Author: Katy Kelleher

Two cool things: Green architecture, plant emotions.

~ Katy Kelleher ~ 3 Comments

PIC_MarkMiller_11. Plant-In City. I’ll let their description do the talking:

Mankind is increasingly leaving nature behind, migrating to concrete jungles where green space is at a premium. Yet urban dwellers will always long for a connection to the earth: we build parks, protect nature reserves, and grow gardens. We’ve become adept at shaping nature to fit our multiple spaces and lifestyles.
Plant-in City is a collaboration between architects, designers, and technologists who are building new ways of interacting with nature. Our 21st century sculptural terrariums combine modular architecture, basic laws of physics, embedded technologies, and mobile computing to construct a “Plant City” where the aesthetic meets the pragmatic.

2. Do plants have emotions? We were discussing this at work the other day, and while my first inclination was to be really skeptical, I’ve been a little swayed. No, I don’t think weeping willows actually need Prozac, just that maybe there’s something these living creatures pick up on that is kind of, maybe a little, like our empathy. Further reading can be found on NYT.com, but this is one of those weird moments when I don’t want to know too much more. According to some people, plants react when living things are killed. Perhaps it’s true, perhaps it’s not, but I rather like that idea and for now, I would like it to be so.

I think this must be how people in Iceland “believe” in fairies. According to one article, 80% of Icelanders think fairies are real. Maybe they do, or maybe 80% of the country just has a more whimsical outlook on life than we do. Either way, I want to go to Iceland and see some freaking fairies.

The History of Pretty: I Love Alphonse Mucha.

~ Katy Kelleher ~ 1 Comment

Mucha 1I decided I need a bit more consistency in my posts, so I’m going to start a series where I highlight my favorite artists from history. It’s one part review (I learned so much wonderful stuff in college and then never used it again) and one part blogging exercise. Two parts futile? Perhaps! But does one really need an excuse to look at Mucha’s gorgeous ladies? If your answer is yes, you’re wasting my time, then I really just don’t know why you’re reading my blog.

alphonse_mucha_danceMucha was a Czech artist who lived during the late 19th, early 20th century. As you can see from his works, he was pretty invested in the whole Art Nouveau thing—in fact, he practically invented this particular poster style, which went on to become immensely popular in fin de siecle Paris. But Mucha was also crazy popular in his motherland. Following his international success at the 1900 Universal Exhibition in Paris, he returned to Prague to create art that he felt was truly reflective of the Czech history and character.

While a lot of people know him for his pretty posters that adorn dorm rooms of quasi-artsy young adults all over the world, I have always loved his pieces that depict the “Czech woman.” He idealized the Czech peasant ladies, with their strong bodies and long, flowing hair. He wanted to capture the spirit of his small country, and he often did this through allegories. Sure, he also did plenty of advertisements, but I’ll never forget seeing pieces from “The Slav Epic” and his seasons series at the Mucha Museum in Prague. While his style is stamped all over the city, from twisty, organic-inspired light fixtures to hand-painted flowering vines that adorn the exterior of an otherwise unremarkable building, it was fascinating to see so much of one artist’s work in one place. I brought home a poster, which has since been crushed and wrinkled out of shape. But I don’t think I’ll ever throw it out.

job

I love public art, especially Filippo Minelli’s man-made clouds.

~ Katy Kelleher ~ 1 Comment

filippo-minelli-shape01I think artists who create in the public sphere are so goddamn brave and so freaking important. Art doesn’t just belong in museums—it belongs everywhere. In fantastic design, in beautiful typography, in the books we read and in the things we eat. Yes, I’m getting carried away. But I really, fundamentally believe that art is and should be everywhere, and the people who say “but I could do that” should probably be taken away and put in a boring gray cubicle where they can live out the rest of their lives without any aesthetic stimulation or provocative sights.

Whew. Today is apparently a day for rants (it’s also a day for taxes, but I’ll save that rant for my freelance friends). It’s also a good day to look at Filippo Minelli’s gorgeous photographs. The artist has been creating public art works since the early 90’s. A lot of his pieces play with borders and boundaries, liminal spaces and weird half-places. He has plenty of cool work, but I’m particularly drawn to the Silence/Shapes series. It’s an ongoing project of colorful clouds in natural spaces—or, as he describes it:

Decontextualization of a violent tool changing quickly the surroundings, creating chaos, blinding the eyes, used in natural landscapes. The result proves that beauty can be found in clashing visions with an approach and aesthetic similar to romanticism. Showing the power of nature with the implication of religious aspects. Juxtaposing violence and beauty as a political statement. Giving silence a physical shape to be aware of its presence in the age of information and communication technology.

PUBARTI know you’re interested in silence, but please, Filippo, keep talking. I like the things you say.

More here.

Late winter storm superfood salad.

~ Katy Kelleher ~ Leave a comment

IMG_1867My boyfriend has been walking around the house singing “Let It Snow” all day, because here in Portland it’s snowing like nuts. Maine, you drive me crazy. It’s almost spring, and yet here I am, sitting at home when I should be working, all because of the snow day. Just kidding, that’s actually pretty awesome.

Anyway, I decided to use some of the vegetables in my refrigerator to make a winter-inspired superfood salad for lunch. I over-indulged last night at Moxy, a new restaurant down in Portsmouth (pate and fried clams and pork belly, oh my!) and I’m atoning for it today with healthy foods and shoveling snow.

Winter Super Food Super Salad

Ingredients:
– 2 cups raw kale, washed and shredded into bite-sized pieces (stems removed)
– 2 cups chopped sweet potatoes (I like 1/2 inch cubes)
– 1 cup wild rice, cooked

Dressing:
– Whole-grain dijon mustard
– Honey
– Apple cider vinegar
– Olive oil
– Salt & pepper

1. Toss the sweet potatoes with olive oil, garlic salt, and lemon pepper—or whatever spices you like to use when roasting veggies. Put them in an oven at 350 and roast for 30 minutes or until the outsides are beginning to brown, turning once to get an even roast.
2. While the tubers are cooking, massage the kale. In order for kale to be tasty while raw, you have to like, rub it. It’s a very high maintenance vegetable, but it’s also insanely healthy, so just do it. Squeeze the kale roughly while rinsing it in warm water for a few minutes and it should be good to go.
3. Mix your dressing! I know I should be more precise here, but I pretty much just mix it to taste. I use twice as much mustard as honey, about the same amount of oil, and a big splash of vinegar. I like my dressing really tangy, and I think Bragg’s Apple Cider is the best.
4. Toss the kale with the cooked wild rice (cheat and use Trader Joe’s frozen wild rice if you’re lazy) and add the dressing while the rice is still warm. Let sit for a few minutes. The vinegar will help the kale tenderize.
5. Take out your sweet potatoes, drop them on top, and eat. Feel less guilty about consuming roughly your own weight in fried pork trotter patties and other meaty items. Pretend you care about Lent and eating right. Then have some 1 p.m. wine for dessert.

Pink lakes make me wish for some green.

~ Katy Kelleher ~ Leave a comment

PINK LAKES 09If I had a couple thousand dollars to throw around, a Steve Back print would be one of the first things in my shopping cart. These amazing photographs capture pink lakes (pink lakes!) in Western Australia. The sweet, beautiful hue comes from a naturally occurring algae, which makes it a million times more enjoyable than the shockingly colored sunsets caused by pollution (which I admit, I do enjoy anyway. Hey, if there world is going down in flames, we might as well marvel at the colors, right?).

Sadly, a framed print costs around $2,500. Sigh.

HUTT LAGOON 02I think waking up and looking at those colors everyday would make me a fundamentally better person. I think I’d be a lot nicer (not to mention cooler) with a pink lake hanging on my wall.

See more here.

{via Black Eiffel}

Judith Geher paints all the pretty girls.

~ Katy Kelleher ~ 1 Comment

judith4Oh my gosh, Judith Geher’s work takes my breath away. Her style is gorgeous—it’s like Mary Cassatt time-traveled to the 21st century, attended fashion week, and then spent some quality time at the florist. Her paintings are filled with color and motion, thick brushstrokes and sweet pastels. I’m dying for spring flowers, and Geher’s paintings just fit the bill. 47665_judith-geher_311Picture 10Truly beautiful, right? I love the impressionist style, not to mention her lovely subjects. I wonder if she ever does portraits. It would be AMAZING to be painted as one of her ethereal flower girls.

See more of her fantastic work here.

Flying so close to the sun.

~ Katy Kelleher ~ 4 Comments

featered friendSometimes I think I’m pretty crafty, and then I see work like Diana Beltran Herrera’s and I realize I have a long, LONG way to go. I can make paper flowers, but she makes paper fly. Her gorgeous series of paper birds can be seen in full on Flickr, but I first found it on the excellent site Colossal. It’s truly amazing what someone can do with colored paper and a little bit of glue. I’m jealous.

lovelylittlebirdsSee more here.

I want to hang out with Amy Ross.

~ Katy Kelleher ~ 1 Comment

1AMY75You know how people are always saying stuff about celebrities like, “I could totally see myself being best friends with Person X and going out for Taco Tuesday in our yoga pants!” or whatever? (Jennifer Lawrence, you seem to be everyone’s girlcrush of the moment. I hope you savor it, because the internet tide is mean and will turn.) Well, sometimes I feel that way about artist. I know, I just mocked the idea. But sometimes I see a picture and think I would probably like the way their brain works. And that happened today with Amy Ross.

AMY ROSSRoss makes these wonderfully detailed pictures of impossible creatures. Birds with mushroom caps for heads, trees with cloven hooves, people shape-shifting into wolves and foxes and other wild things—you get the idea. It reminds me of illustrations from old children’s books, or something out of an 19th Century field guide. They’re lovely and strange at once. Sometimes, I don’t even see the out-of-context species-mixing until after I look a bit closer, particularly with the magnolia series. amy_rossDon’t you think, based on these pictures, that Ross would want to drink tea with me while explaining Downton Abbey? Why does everyone like that show so much? I don’t get it.

See her whole portfolio (it’s HUGE) on her website: AmyRoss.com.

Papercuts for The Bard.

~ Katy Kelleher ~ 1 Comment

romeoandjuliet_kevinstanton9Some people say that print is dead, but I’m not buying it—probably because I am buying books, and so are plenty of other bibliophiles. However, I do think publishing is changing, and one way I can see it adapting to the digitization of the writer word is through making books that aren’t disposable, that aren’t simply a collection of characters, but rather objects worth owning (and collecting). Plenty of publishers, both the big guys and the indie players, are releasing special edition copies of the classics that are straight up gorgeous. I’ve written about my adoration for the Barnes & Noble collaboration with typographer and artist Jessica Hische a few times before (enough that my mom took note, and bought me a box set for Christmas last year), but today I came across a new object of literary lust: Sterling Publishing’s Shakespeare collection, as illustrated by papercutting genius Kevin Stanton.

hamlet papercutJust look at Ophelia! It’s lovely and bold and sharp and fluid all at once. From what I can tell, the books have different color palates, from Hamlet‘s dramatic navy and red to the vibrant yellows of Much Ado About Nothing. If funds weren’t an issue, I would buy them all right now—especially Hamlet, because I’ve always had a soft spot for that faker.

Stanton_MA9Check out more of Stanton’s work here.