interior double doors: art

Showing posts with label art. Show all posts

Colorful Mats

The apartment of Ingrid Bergman in the 1958 film Indiscreet has become a design favorite. I've never seen anyone else frame their art so colorfully until yesterday when I came across two examples.

David Hicks also used colorful mats or "picture mounts" as they are called in David Hicks: A Life of Design. This London apartment from 1954 was also featured in House & Garden so I wonder if the set designer from Indiscreet happened to see it.

While looking through Tales of Endearment, the blog by Natalie Joos yesterday, I came across a photo of Fabiola Beracasa's apartment. I love how cheerful the bright colors look on the dark wall.

Kate and Andy Spade also hung artwork with colorful mats in their daughter's room. The craziest color I've used for a mat is pale blue so I might have to add this idea to my list of things to try this year!

One of my dreams is to meet artist Jeremiah Goodman and watch him work. Since that hasn't happened in person yet, I'm glad I can see photos of him sketching and painting. Usually his work is on the smaller scale but the Swedish retailer Acne commissioned him to create three large canvas murals for their London boutique. I don't usually like to mention age but Mr. Goodman is 88 and his fantastic work is clearly keeping him young!

Photos by Dean Rhys Morgan

The best part about the roof garden at The Metropolitan Museum of Art is that it's open to the sky. So imagine my surprise when I stepped off the elevator and was faced with a 100 foot long bamboo structure that blocked the sun! It looked like a cross between Kon-Tiki and a hippie Swiss Family Robinson habitat. My visit was at the end of May when I was at the Met to see the Picasso exhibit so I hadn't read yet anything about the summer installation which officially entitled Big Bambú: You Can't, You Don't, and You Won't Stop. At first, I wasn't sure whether I liked it or not but once I had a chance to walk through it and read more about it, I definitely came to appreciate this amazing art exhibition.

Twin brothers Doug and Mike Starn and a team of rock climbers will be constructing Big Bambú until October and you can watch them build it before your eyes. I witnessed one worker strip the bamboo poles of leaves and cut them for the other members tied them together with nylon rope. You can see in my photos that the team climb very high off the ground and dotted throughout the installation. If you are also dressed properly, meaning sneakers and shorts or pants, you can schedule a guided tour that takes you along the footpaths and bridges that weave through the structure. I, of course, was wearing sandals and a dress so I didn't not take advantage of this opportunity which quite frankly looked scary! I am sure it would be very exciting for children though. It will interesting to check in periodically throughout the summer and see how Big Bambú has evolved and even more so to see how it ends. And more importantly, I wonder how many months it will take them to clean up!

Photos by Heather Clawson for Habitually Chic

Since I'm off to LaLa Land, I thought I'd take this time to post some great Los Angeles homes. This one belongs to the chic married couple Michael Govan and Katherine Ross and family. He's the Director of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and she has worked in public relations for LVMH. Not sure if she's still with them but regardless, this is one fashionable family! When they moved to LA, they wanted a Richard Neutra house but has clearly made due with this lovely home filled with their art collection as well as pieces borrowed from the museum. When I think of California design, I often think of mid-century modern furniture and I love all the bright colors they used for their pieces. It's a pop art paradise! Enjoy!

Photos by Francois Halard for May 2008 issue of Vogue

Does it ever warm up in Chicago? If it does, I may have to book a trip so I can see the Matisse exhibition that opens on March 20th at The Art Institute of Chicago. Matisse: Radical Invention 1913-1917 "examines what is without question the most innovative, momentous, and yet little-studied time in the artist’s long career." Nearly 120 of his most ambitious and experimental paintings, sculptures, drawings, and prints from the period are on view until June 20, 2010. Matisse is one of my favorite artists and I can already imagine that this will be a spectacular exhibition. Book your tickets now!

Creativity takes courage. - Henri Matisse

The New York weather has left something to be desired lately and I can't think of any better place to escape to than a museum. I'll admit that sometimes contemporary art leaves me scratching my head but getting out of your comfort zone and the comfort of your own home can be inspiring so I think I am going to check out the Whitney Biennial this weekend. The show runs through May 30, 2010 and only happens every two years so if you miss it now, you'll have to wait a while until you can see it again. Bon Weekend!

Pae White, Smoke Knows, 2009. Cotton and polyester, 114 × 258 in. (289.6 × 655.3 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy greengrassi, London and 1301PE, Los Angeles. Photograph by Fredrik Nilsen

I'm off to a job site today but I'm leaving you with my favorite booth from the New York International Gift Fair, Style de Vie. We first noticed all the blueprints and other vintage documents covering the table and then we looked up to all the fabulous framed works and realized we needed to learn more. Jean-Christophe Hryb collects vintage graphics from around the world including maritime blueprints and trolley signs from the UK and school posters from France, in addition to matchbooks, hotel labels, scarves, maps, advertisements and more!

I love nothing more than trolling flea markets and thrift shops for vintage art but sometimes I just don't have the time or I might be looking for a specific type of art that is hard to find so Style de Vie will definitely be a great resource! Happy Shopping!

When a group of artwork is of different sizes and shapes, they always look great hung gallery style. When artwork is the same size or a part of a series, there is nothing that makes a bigger impact than hanging them all together in a grid. They sometimes end up creating a larger work of art such as the multiple maps of Paris but even the framed botanicals and figure drawings can create the look of a larger piece of art. Of course, it's harder to hang artwork evenly this way but it might be worth the expense to hire someone to help you since the final result is so dramatic. Even Elle Decor realizes the appeal of the grid since they often put them on their covers and on their pages! And if it's good enough for them, it's definitely good enough for me!