Love this Spring/Summer 2011 Marimekko fashion show at what looks to be a flower auction ...

Some pictures I took around the house today....








Riu Tenreiro's illustrations for the book The Celebration are amazing! I love the simple colour scheme, his quirky style and the story board look of the book.

I also really like the the simple illustrative style and limited colour use of Brandon A. Dalmer's work.

I think public art should have presence in the space it's occupying, and for me public art is most effective when it changes the way people react to it, for example the way they move around a sculpture and how it impacts their emotions and sense of space. I think the sculptures of Richard Serra are an excellent example of how public sculpture can alter a person's perception of space. This video shows the installation of Serra's sculpture garden at the MOMA. The shear size of his work is incredible. It is amazing how he challenges a person's perception of space with such simple concave and convex bends in shapes.

My favourite public art space is the Stravinsky Fountain at the Centre Pompidou in Paris.

Mayle is my newest favourite fashion. I love the Fall 2007 collection. It is all about layering boxy shapes and legs!

Here is something I drew, dreaming of the west coast....

I came across Brazilian designer Maria Elvira Crosara. She designs clothing under the fashion brand Anunciação. One of her techniques is to commission guest artists to design the prints and embroideries used in her clothing. Artist Catalina Estradda's illustrations appear in the winter 07 collection. Her illustrations are seen in the orange and blue dress below.

What is most striking for me is that the print and embroidery seem to be more meaningful in her collections than the actual design of the clothing. The following picture is an example of embroidery on her clothing. Although the jacket is beautiful, it is overshadowed by the the bright embroidery. I do love how much colour she uses in her designs, and I love the playfulness of the prints she selects.


Another designer-team I love is Jovovich-Hawk. I especially like their collection from Fall/Winter 2005. It is so feminine and tom-boyish at the same time!

This entry is dedicated to Scandinavian designers I admire...

Finnish designer Akira Minagawa designs fabrics and clothing among other projects under the brand name minä perhonen. "Minä" means "I" and "perhonen" means "butterfly" in Finnish. In her profile she says she choose this name "with a hope of creating many beautiful designs as butterfly wings fluttering lightly in the sky". Her designs are reminiscent of fashion from the thirties with added femininity, and I especially love the hair pieces she designs.

Pictured below is a sample from her 2007 spring/summer collection.



Designers Mari Relander and Anna Katriina have a design company called Perhonen . They have collaborated on a wide variety of projects and competitions. They have exhibited abroad both with Imu design and on their own. Their designs were selected for the annual Sotheby´s contemporary art and design exhibition held in London in 2003. Recently their work was exhibited in Tokyo in an exhibition of new Scandinavian design. The exhibition was curated by designer Harri Koskinen and held at the Issey Miyake Design Studio Gallery (MDSG).

Their Anemone lamp is pictured below.




Designer Tord Boontje was born in the Netherlands, but currently resides in France. He designs for many different projects, but maintains a very unique and distinct style. His philosophy is the marriage between emotion and design. His textile work reminds me of Chinese papercutting.

I especially love his installations, and particularly his Winter Wonderland installation at the Swarvoski Crystal Gallery in Innsbruck.

Boontje says this of his Winter Wonderland installation, "In a demonstration of the emotional quality of crystal, we created a landscape in which the visitors are taken on a fantasy journey. References to fairytales, storytelling, history and adventures invite personal interpretation and dreams."

Shown below is a fraction of the work from Boontje's Winter Wonderland Installation.

Winter not only restricts fashion, to wearing thick sweaters for months on end, it also inspires it! Like Canada, fashion in Helsinki, Finland is full of boots, coats, and warm hats! I found this crazy website HEL LOOKS, which features tons of photographs of street fashion in Helsinki. It was started as a hobby project, but progressed, and now they have been taking pictures in clubs and on the streets of Helsinki for the past two years. Here is a sample of some of the great wears on HEL LOOKS...



They also feature a little blurb about each person they photograph, usually telling what inspires them in their fashion, so this is a great site for any fashion-enthusiast.

Also visit Jacqui Oakley's website. I absolutely love her illustrations! Her portraits are amazing, and I also love her one illustration of bugs. Her work is so grainy, and colourful, and nice!

Now you can buy art not only because you love it, but for a good cause as well. At pretty:darn:swell, they have a gallery full of artists' prints for sale. When viewing each artwork, you can see which selected charity the proceeds will be going to from that sale. Their mission is to raise money for charitable organizations and to promote emerging artists. Sounds good to me! Here is one print from their gallery. It is laura e. horning's 'the blackbird's migration'.