You have art on your walls, right? Knick-knacks on your shelves? Do you actually like it, or is it there because 1) you bought it in college at the poster sale and just haven’t gotten rid of it yet, or B) you have to have something decorative around your place, and even though that ceramic dog your aunt gave you is hideous, it is Art (mostly) and can fill space on a shelf? If you do not have art that you actually like, don’t worry–there’s plenty out there to enrich the spaces you live in. And a good place to start in our internet age is Etsy, which features thousands of independent artists making amazing work.
So here we are. Each week I’m going to stop in and share some things that caught my eye.
Unusual Cards is our first pick this week, and even before you see her work, you know you’re in good hands when you read the beginning of her artist’s profile: “Born in the Arctic tundra in 1952, artist Francesca Berrini was raised by polar bears until the age of seven. Her interest in art began to develop immediately after being captured by an an oil exploration team. Unable to speak or read, she proved adept at creating humorous sculptures out of seal carcasses and beer cans.” Francesca’s collages, hand-cut from vintage illustrations, are exquisitely wrong in all the right ways, and the recurring theme of Jesus hanging with dinosaurs in her prints warms our Creation Museum-loving hearts.
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Next up is Twoems–and in particular, Melanie Mikecz’s stunning Striped Chameleons Print. Her work is very vibrant and fun, with great texture and line, and I especially like her prints with animals. While they would be a fabulous addition to a child’s room, her prints would easily be at home in a “grown-up” house too. She uses a digital mixed-media technique that combines tangible artists’ media, like pencils and oil paints, with photoshoppy computer methods to make her prints.
Our final shop this week is Adoptabot, “the world’s first robot orphanage.” Brian makes robot assemblage sculptures from found objects, and some of them, like Creeper here, are poseable. And each unique robot comes with a birth certificate and tag that authenticate them as being born at the Adopt-A-Bot orphanage.
Good art isn’t just for you–share it with others the next time you need a gift for someone. And if you find something you like out there, share it in the comments!
