Art Inspiration: Native American Pottery

I went to Stanford University's Cantor Center for the Arts the other day. Although the exhibition for SFMOMA's Pop Art Collection was still under construction (such a bummer! I really wanted to see it! Hopefully, I will get a chance to see before I leave...but it's difficult to schedule in), the closing gave me a chance to become very inspired by the geometric designs in the Native American pottery exhibition. I love the harsh edges and super modern patterns.

Asymmetrical, minimalist feel. Use of negative space very effective.

Typically, circles don't really work well in an art piece because they draw so much attention, but this somehow manages to complement the other rectangular elements.

Contrast with solid colors, repetitive lines. Varied Textures.

Love how they added a fantastical geometric shape in the center of the animal. You can still tell what it is, but the diamond makes it unique and interesting.

I think I'm often so caught up with modern or post-modern pieces that I forget to appreciate the more rustic roots of where a lot of these artistic ideas come from. I can't wait to add some of these geometric patterns into my future sketches! 

J.Crew Diversifies Summer 2014 Catalog!

When I was browsing through the J.Crew Catalog, I was really surprised to see an Asian male model for the Men's section. It's nice to see J.Crew being more progressive about hiring different races and ethnicities, effectively rejecting the unsexy Asian male stereotype.

look at that little eyebrow raise ;)

I was trying to look up who he was, but couldn't find it. So, who is this man? I guess there is a pretty great incentive for stores such as J.Crew to diversify their catalog. With still mostly white models, the brand extends their consumer base while retaining their original customers. With an awareness of this, I looked at LLBean's catalog and literally everyone was white. I saw one African American in the entire catalog and that was it. As an American brand, I would really think that they would try to at least embrace diversity somewhat.

Fashion often runs the fine line between celebrating different ethnicities and cultural appropriation/reinforcing stereotypes, but I think J.Crew does a good job in this instance. I would like to see more Indian or indigenous models in the near future, as they often get even less coverage in fashion and are more stigmatized in society. 

Joseph Bueys Portrait

Joseph Bueys.

German.

Fluxus.

One of the most unique faces I've ever seen.

Work in Progress.

More progress.

Final Product. Photo Enhanced and Sharpened.

Reference Image Here.

4B Graphite Pencil on Paper.

One Hour Fifteen Minutes

I haven't drawn in a long time, but through this experience, I realized that I like the act of drawing in itself, another addition to my intrinsically motivated activities. Hopefully this will let me know what I want to do in the future.

Architecture Inspiration: Alvar Aalto

Finnish.

Romantic Functionalism.

Aalto.

Curved ceiling design for acoustics. Municipal Library in Viipuri, Russia.

Aalto's own studio in his home. I love exploring how architects design their own houses. 

Aalto's self-designed living room.

Villa Mairea in Noormarkku, Finland. Simple design that is just so appealing. Love the black accents.

Baker Building in MIT. Actually got to live in here when I came to visit! I love the curves of the building, which create ample study/social space. The rooftop views at night are also gorgeous.

Experimental House. Interesting how they actually took the resources to make an experiment. Super avant-garde, but very beautiful. 

Municipal Library in Viipuri, Russia. These door handles are so beautiful! 

Photos taken from book "Aalto" by Louna Lahti.