Author Archive


Posted on March 7, 2012 - by

Kendall Buster

Aside from having a great name, Kendall Buster’s work has the advantage of coming from one of the great fodder-generators for this here blog, Neil, who I will from now on refer to as my friend and not my brother’s! Like my brother, Neil went to Hopkins for college and just recently the campus installed a large sculptural piece from Kendall called Vessel Field!

What do you see? I mean, these pieces are first of all, huge! According to a 2004 NPR interview, “trained as a microbiologist, she explores the forms and landscapes seen in a microscope lens through her giant sculptures.” So it all starts coming together, these are microscopic things, blown up after years of crouching over a microscope and entering their “world.”

Part of what I love too is how sturdy and clean they look! I love that she makes them almost, but not quite, too huge for their space, which in some ways is what things like disease can be thought of as being themselves. Kendall apparently finds diseases under the microscope beautiful, something I can ID with her at Pokate.

Many of the structures are horizontal, some hung from the ceiling, but some are also much more structural – like buildings. Nearly all can be walked around and within (basically are bigger than me!).

So, interestingly, Kendall is based in Virginia and attended Corcoran College of Art and Design in DC for her BFA and Yale for her MFA in Sculpture. I don’t know why I find it so unique that she lives in Virginia but for some reason it sets her and her creations apart in my mind. The pieces above remind me of old architectural drawing and the Eiffel Tower.

She also works in amazing colors. Her site is very beautiful but she doesn’t speak about materials too much it doesn’t seem. The tension in the fabric in the piece above suggests perhaps a soft textile or netting but I’m not sure if she uses the same material across multiple pieces.

The whole thing sort of reminds me of Ernest Neto, whose room-filling works I recall fondly.

No denying the cellular/molecular correlation here. It’s just too cool. I also wonder what the installation process is like – I really can’t tell weight of the pieces.


Posted on March 3, 2012 - by

Susan Benarcik

In just a few short days my mother will be receiving the very first Parks Partners award from the Mayor of Boston. In the spirit of that I thought I’d do a horticulturally inspired post and Susan Benarcik’s work fit the bill.

I’m fairly certain those are everyday toothpicks glued to the wall in an irregular pattern. She calls this Picsulated.

This work, Disparate Memories, might be my favorite. The “baskets” look to be rolled up material that’s then tied together to hold these forms. En masse they look very organic, like a growing set of barnacles inside the home.

Natural Pattern – I love feathers! The white with the cream, and the sort of weird curl really gets me in this piece. I also, as avid readers know, love a good piece of wall art.

I think this is papier mache – I’m not really sure. Her website is very beautiful but it doesn’t give much detail on scale or materials. Her background is in printmaking though so I think that most of these are paper based.

Little feathered pods! This remind me of the saran wrap pods made by Susie MacMurray.

From her prints…she has an amazing ability with textures and patterns. These could be cellular or they could be string beans, who knows!


Posted on February 29, 2012 - by

Karen Margolis

Karen Margolis uses circles in her work (both positive and negative) and it’s amazing what she can do primarily with just that one shape.

The circle to Karen represents “infinity and perfection” rooted in Zen Buddhism. She says on her site that, “The Enso, Japanese for circle, is my inspiration for imagery.” and in the monochromatic nature of each work also seems to reflect the simplicity there.

She works not only in 2D paper works but also 3D sculpture. I don’t know this is made of but it reminds me of Ayala Serfaty’s lamps. 

The above and following are from what I think is my favorite series of Karen’s – Maps. She cuts, paints and layers maps and various kinds of paper to create these.

These look to me like bubbles coming up from the deep and trapped under glass just before they break. Anyone else?

Some look thicker and some look thinner. The above looks to be made of thinner material than the other maps. I also wonder what the maps are of before they’re cut and if that matters to the piece.

They create such good shadows on the wall. I wonder how deep the piece is itself before coming off of the wall. I love the champagne color of the above work and the variety of the bubble size.

It looks like they have some sheen to them…I absolutely love these.


Posted on February 23, 2012 - by

Lauren Clay

When you paint paper and then form it into sculptures on wood armatures is that painting or sculpture? Does it matter? Is it both? Such is the questions that came up when I saw the works of Lauren Clay that I love most. The below, to me, made in that very way, looks like a swatch of hide from some cartoon character!

I love the ombre pattern and the irregularity of the lengths of the strips and yet their curved ends. Each of these variations takes so much care and effort. Lauren got her BFA at the Savannah College of Art and Design and her MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University.

The above work, “Imperishable Wreath” looks like it’s on fire – what a great installation. I bet my friend Charlotte would love this, the colors are awesome and so unexpected – just when you get into the pink there are greens, teals, reds, yellows…

I mean – these pieces are so crazy – I absolutely love them. This is nearly three feel long! I grew up with an old beaded native american decorative item in our TV room that looked just like this except that the above reminds me of it as some space age / Tron version.

This one incorporates foam and plastic – I’m not sure where. The paint Lauren uses is acrylic but it almost looks glossier than acrylics I have in my cupboard. I love that this one looks like it’s exploding off the wall, wet, and uncontrolled.


Posted on February 22, 2012 - by

Jessica Drenk

It’s a barnacle bonanza over here tonight – thanks again to the people of Pinterest I came upon the work of Jessica Drenk tonight in all of its glory. Jessica takes everyday products from pencils to coffee filters to mops and creates the most amazing installations, wall art pieces and smaller sculptures. As I should have expected, Jessica’s from Montana originally, starting her love of nature!

Guess what that material is…toilet paper rolls…coated and ensconced in wax. How cool – they look like little hives! Currently Jessica works from South Carolina.

More beautiful, framed toilet paper rolls. Who would have thought these would be made into art objects. I feel like this is something my brother would send me and ask, is this art? It definitely is.

The above are from her Erosions series – the material? Carved PVC pipes. Initially the erosion part didn’t come through to me but as you scroll through the whole series on her site it becomes very clear.

Carved books! I feel like Jessica’s work is a fun game of posting images and seeing who can guess what’s what first!

What I can’t quite figure out is if the books are waxed first and then carved or if they’re carved and then waxed. I imagine it’s the former.

So this is where the barnacles come into play…these are coffee filters and cable ties. Look how beautifully they cover a wall / room.

With the varying depths they truly look like coral reef structures. They have shadow and variety – I just love them. And they’re monochromatic, my favorite.

The full room view gives you a real sense of what they look like in aggregate. I love that this is something that, ostensibly, you could create after stopping at the grocery store and the hardware store (no accounting for the patience and creativity required). It’s just fun to see what can be created out of everyday materials.

…a book! Carved, wax embraced again – who would have thought.

“Swirl” the above piece is also wax books. I love these small scale installation type of works. They do seem more collector friendly for some reason (this may be due to space constraints).

This is where stuff gets even more interesting. Jessica not only uses wax as a stabilizing medium for her works but also porcelain, a favorite material of mine. Guess what this is? Q-tips, dipped in porcelain and fired. I absolutely love this. I love that the Q tips don’t totally disappear, I love that the cotton bits look like they’re exploding. I just love it all.

Cotton cosmetic pads, also dipped in porcelain slip and fired. In this case it looks like more of the cotton pads burned out in the firing process but that they’re shape remained. I wonder how long she lets the porcelain slip harden before firing – or if that even matters.

This looks particularly barnacle-y to me. It’s gauze, dipped and fired. I just love how paper thin these look. I could never have these in my home – someone would break them immediately.

Mop…I don’t know how she does it. I love it though. I know some people who have homes that are like museums in some areas with really, truly wonderful artwork in them and I would love to someday have these amazing things but I just can’t see myself able to live around them. They’re so inspiring and magical – thankfully I can hide them all here for when I have to make that call.


Posted on February 22, 2012 - by

Lauren Kussro

Sometimes I come across an artist who makes a variety of works but I’m particularly drawn to one – such is the case of Lauren Kussro’s barnacles – they are awesome and remind me of Emily Barletta’s crochet domes. The below piece, with those vibrant colors, stretches across a huge wall – these are not tiny!

I should also mention that today I’m blogging from my new computer (an Air) and I’m loving it – though it’s so small I am worried that the weight of my arms could break it.

Look at how beautiful those individual barnacles are! And no, that’s not paper from the Papersource down the street, Lauren hand texturizes plain paper into these gorgeous colors and patterns.

Not only does she print the patterns but then she hardens the paper with a waxy coating, then forms the barnacles, sews them into shapes and then sews beads into their “corners” – THEN she hems the internal open areas – what a process! I can appreciate that time!

Totally beautiful – I wish I had a whole wall covered in them – I say that about everyone making barnacle-y type things, I know. Success – I’ve written a post and the computer’s still working!


Posted on February 18, 2012 - by

Eva Hild

I’ve been on a mini vacation since I last wrote – some girlfriends and I went down to Turks & Caicos for some much needed sun and mid-afternoon cocktails. It was awesome! We went walking on the beach, enjoyed the crystal clear waters, and even went banana boat tubing! Now, back in cold Boston, I’ve been looking at artists who continue that clean and simple aesthetic of island living – on Pinterest I found Eva Hild via a pinner called See Cunda.

Eva’s sculptures evoke coral reefs to me. The scale she works at is unexpected (they’re larger than you think) and reflective of just how expansive the reefs can be under the sea. Her chosen medium, stoneware.

She lives and works in southwest Sweden, which somehow seems fitting to me. I recently worked on a deal with a Swedish company and when we were briefing journalists in Scandinavia they all noted how dark it was up here – I too would want to build huge, airy, light and bright works in juxtaposition.

For scale – see how large they are in comparison to the human on the left. They’re surprisingly large – this one reminded me of a decorative sting ray!

Over time (her site is organized by years) it seems to me that Eva has gotten more exacting on the exterior surface of her pieces. The one above looks totally smooth. I also love how she displays her pieces – the colored backgrounds make it easier to see the undulating surfaces.

Eva got her undergraduate degree from the Art School of Gerlesborg and her MFA in Design and Craft from the Univ. of Bothenburg.

This one looks almost skeletal, or like an insect. I love them all – it’s definitely worth checking out more of her process on her site.


Posted on February 7, 2012 - by

Hyacinta Hovestadt

I think Hyacinta Hovestadt might be the hardest artist to track down that I’ve ever blogged about.

I can’t find a website of her own but I can find many videos and fans of her work throughout a variety of sites. That could be because of the material she uses, recycled corrugated cardboard. I’ve written about other people who use cardboard and recycled mediums but hers to me look sort of hive like Hannah Verlin’s Nesting works.

I love that even though they’re made of cardboard, which could be modeled in any way, she still chooses to cut away what some would argue is “more” than she should, creating what look like wheel thrown ceramics that go awry (as mine always did).

The setting in nature are wonderful – you can really see how, like in papercutting, the various layers build upon the others to create what looks like a complete form. It looks more hand-wrought up close but from farther away it looks quite fluid.

From what Google Translate tells me, Hyacinta studied art education and fine arts at the Art Academy in Düsseldorf and Münster University. After that it appears that she worked as an art teacher at a high school and as a museum educator at the Art Collection of the North Rhine. Her bio read that she then spent years doing freelance work as a film director, writer, author and journalist.

She seems to have been a “creative” her whole life and it now experimenting with her medium and trying new things.

With the color variation it looks like a clam shell to me, which seems like exactly her inspiration area – nature and earth-tones. She uses this industrial material, destroys its initial use and recreates something out of it – which to me reads like the essence of recycling. What’s also interesting to note is that Hyacinta doesn’t look at the art market around her – she doesn’t want to know about other people doing things similar to her. I on one hand think that’s cool and on the other hand think it’s kind of sad but either way, I’m glad she’s making what she’s making!


Posted on February 3, 2012 - by

Lee Boroson

There are so many amazing people on Pinterest but one artist who I’ve been following is Mary Osmundsen. She recently posted a piece by Lee Boroson and I had to share this artist’s amazing inflated installations!

The above piece is built out of nylon, monofilament, hardware, a blower, etc. – those are handmade clouds, inflated above these little babies. I love the puffy installations.

These types of pieces though don’t just need to be on the ceiling, they are also made to be on the floor. Part of me looked at these and thought lilypad from above – the other part of me then though, upside down world with lilypads from underwater! I love the care to make sure the power cords to the blowers are matching green.

Tassels? Oh yeah, tassels. This piece is called “Outpouring,” which makes sense to me. This piece also includes wood and decorative pins.

The above piece is glass, silicone, felt, wood, rope, and hardware. It’s like a bubbly cloud and what’s crazy to me is that each one of these 7,000 spheres is blown glass.

Huge! So wild. Lee attended the Philadelphia College of Art for undergraduate and then got an MFA from Indiana at Bloomington.

I love the idea of a soft staircase above a real one – doesn’t it look like it’d be more fun to slide down the blue slide instead of using the appropriate staircase?

This looks like a bomb explosion to me. Scary but then you remember it’s just air! I can’t imagine how frustrating it must be to inflate this and have it not hold…


Posted on January 28, 2012 - by

Valerie Buess

Treehugger posted about an amazing paper artist yesterday – I had to share her here as well – I hope you like Valerie Buess, a Swedish artist, as much as I do!

She takes books, disassembles them and twists and shapes them to create sea-forms, a favorite here.

I also love the photography on her site – it’s so well done. Some of her twisting and curling reminds me of Wendy Wahl whom I wrote about earlier this week. Her tubes appear denser, tighter and colored though.

Look at that color – it’s like an indigo wash. You can see here clearly the repetitive nature of this work and the amazing creations that can come out of that monotony.

The above looks just like filigree – I love the idea of sculpture incased so that it can appear differently. I doubt that all these pieces of book are attached to one another but their weight holds them together here.

So incredible – I have no idea how that’s done, it looks like interconnected vacuum tubes. This reminds me of the plate sculptures of Tara Donovan that look to be growing and multiplying out of each other.

Her hanging sculptures are also incredibly – they look so airy but I imagine they are made of the same twists as the others making them have more weight.

Coral…these all look like coral. I wish I had a sense of their scale and their weight. I imagine this isn’t too big. It also could be a cool bean! I wonder if, like Wahl, she uses specific types of books to create her works or if she uses whatever she can get her hands on.

Look at that little urchin open up and show you more paper. I love all things sea-inspired and this is no different!


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