Fluid beauty

My friend Jen recently convinced me to join Twitter and introduced me to the hot topic of the curator’s code. I am returning to blogging after being remiss for months with a tour de force of curation, replete with absolute full disclosure of all sources. I’ll even use the new unicode symbols, though whether I am being ironic in their use or not is up to the reader.

Act 1: Alberto Seveso

I find these ink and water pieces astonishing because they read like ropy solids that dissolve into smoke without ever being liquid. They are beautiful, if a bit frightening in their squid/dementor-like sense of agency.

Jen, Lots more ᔥthisiscollosal

Act 2: Shinichi Maruyama

Seveso’s work reminds me of this Japanese artist, whose inks aren’t blooming in water but bursting and suspended in air. The moments he is able to capture of suspended inks, waters and paints are sublime. While I’d seen his sumi ink pieces before tonight was the first time I’d seen this lush, mysterious “Gardens” series. Its vignetted, moody lighting and levitating-fluids casting shadows give them all the tension of a David Lynch still.

Remembered as being ᔥthemorningnews galleries from 2010. But my 2009 post proves that was a recovered memory. Drama! ᔥgraphic-exchange.

Act 3: Ferrofluids

Suspend ferrous particles in water or oil and introduce magnets and you have something magical if somewhat disturbing.


↬My old friend Shani on her incredibly well-curated Typologica. A whole lot more can be found ᔥ the charmingly titled fuckyeahfluiddynamics tumblr.

Chapter 4: R.I.P Moebius

I can’t help but think I’ve been in a water-art kick recently because I keep going back and looking over galleries of work by Moebius, who died last week. Jean Giraud was a one-of-a-kind talent (and a major visual inspiration for Star Wars, Dune, Tron, and Alien, great articlecoudalcasualoptimist). His sense of fluidity and float were uncanny.

Plenty more Moebius all over the web especially these days but as usual I like the curation ↬butdoesitfloat

The four-act structure and source-checking probably does have to do with Mike Daisey lying to Ira Glass. Did you read David Carr NYT on that? Ok ok, I’ll stop.

Kusho

kushodrops

I find these shots by Shinichi Maruyama absolutely stunning. He photographs (extremely fast) midair combinations of water and black ink. Not only is the subject matter a reference to traditional sumi paintings and calligraphy, but formally an exploration of the variety of ways the two – light/dark, opaque/clear – oppose and combine with each other, making them an apt metaphor for just about everything. I love the thoroughness of this exploration almost as much as the beauty of the individual pieces.
kusho1kushodrop

kusho_opposition

kusho_circleshinichi

Lots more, and higher-res, at shinichimaruyama.com.

via graphic-exchange.

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