This incredible brain marionette seems to be attributed to Brock Davis (although I didn’t see it on his official website at first glance).
Oh, what I would give to have this in the library at my house.
Tag: craft
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Doubleparlour is a husband and wife team, specializing in peculiar custom toys and sculptures. They exhibit all sorts of emotions; surprise, excitement, ennui…
And some are interesting conceptually…
Some are rather unsettling (the bellies that seem to be marked by an elaborate scarification process certainly jack up the creepiness!).
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Dustin Poche is one of my favorite art doll makers. He works predominantly with paper clay and vintage textiles (which add an air of authenticity and depth to his creations).
Poche’s first venture into the figure and sculpting world began with the restoration of 1920’s era boudoir dolls. He states: “I learned a lot while working with the antique dolls, but there was something missing in the end result. I imagined characters with more expressive faces, emotions, and gestures. To bring these characters to light, I realized I had to begin sculpting them.”
I love his work with “mature” subjects. One almost gets the sense that they have aged naturally, though they always keep up a veneer of glamor.
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Brooke Weston makes interesting mixed media sculpture, in which animals house tiny worlds within them.
From the artist bio:
Her work is primarily made from old taxidermy and almost all recycled material. Almost all of her pieces share the concept of small worlds and dioramas situated in objects. She gathers inspiration from antique fairy tale illustrations, amusement parks and artists like Bosch and Joe Coleman.
It might be wise for every human being to take a step back and view him/herself as an empty bust. What would decorate the inside of yours?
Perhaps there is a rare skin condition among deer that looks like a rash of villages and ships. (Kidding! I love the imagination here)
Ah, come have a seat by the fire…in this goat neck.
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Anna Barlow is one of my favorite ceramic artists. She creates decadent heaps of melting, oozing treats that seem to defy the laws of physics (obviously, treats really do defy physics otherwise I wouldn’t be totally up for dessert on a full stomach, which I often am. The regular stomach and “dessert stomach” are separate organs).
In her own words:
I am fascinated by the way we eat food, especially by the rituals around celebrational or indulgent treats that have developed; the way they are assembled, displayed and then eaten. I am also interested in how food tells a story of the people and place it’s in. A full stand of ice creams could suggest a hot day or treats abandoned for some mysterious reason…
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I’ve brought you X-Ray Lamps before, but here’s another way to bring bones into your home lighting. This one comes from Necrosculptures.
You will also find a chandelier:
I feel there should be a positive descriptive word for bone inspired creations. Osteoriffic? Osteolicious?
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IRO Fiber Art has the most beautiful collection of handcrafted butterflies and moths.
The colors and textures are fantastic (click to enlarge). Each one is so unique…
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Ellen Rixford creates mixed media puppets, sculptures and automata that are fun, beautiful, imaginative and full of character.
One of my favorites in her portfolio:
I haven’t seen many artists do cloth portraits of this type, but I think it works!
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Artist/photographer Henry Hargreaves has combined two of my favorite things: silent films and cake (well, technically cake frosting, but still). He recreated the iconic image from George Melies’s 1902 film Le Voyage Dans La Lune.
The original:
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Kintsukuroi is a concept very close to my heart. Like these pieces, my body bears the marks of having been broken and put back together again (multiple times). Oh, the stories a few inches of skin can tell!
I find these items breathtaking, and would very much like to create one or have one in my home. Upon reading about this technique and philosophy, I was reminded of a thrift store statue I purposely bought in a broken state (despite the urging of a well-meaning shop owner to opt for one in better condition); a angel holding a bird whose wing had broken off. Though no more than half an inch was missing, the entire meaning of the statue changed with that broken wing. The bird was not dallying for a moment in the midst of carefree flight as originally intended, it was being cradled, protected, healed by a benevolent protector.
As I continue to move through my (still unspeakably slow and challenging) physical recovery, I rejoice in the lines on my flesh that saved my life and the metaphorical gold within them. I am not broken…I am Kintsukuroi, right?
Take time to love the imperfect, the discarded, the reconstructed and overlooked treasures around you (or ON you!). As Leonard Cohen once sang “There’s a crack in everything…that’s how the light gets in.”
SheWalksSoftly 