Vik Muniz' Ashtray Recreates Classic Art In Ashes And Cigarette Butts.

If you are at all familiar with the work of artist Vik Muniz, you know it's not unusual for him to use such a bizarre medium as garbage, literally, in his artwork. In this beautiful limited edition ashtray, Muniz takes the classic 1818 painting by Caspar David Friedrich, The Wanderer, and recreates it in ashes and cigarette butts which was then photographed and screened into porcelain.

Caspar David Friedrich's The Wanderer above the Sea of Fog (1818):


Muniz drew the image with ashes and butts, originally in 1999. He then photographed the image and had it screened onto a beautiful porcelain ashtray made at Limoges in Bernardaud, France. The rim of the ashtray is then hand-painted in silver leaf.




Vik Muniz, Untitled ashtray, 1999
Screen printed photograph on Limoges porcelain with hand-painted silver trim
1¾ h. x 7½ x 6½ inches,
Published by the Peter Norton Family Christmas Project.*
Produced in a limited edition

Priced at $650. You can order it by contacting info@artwareeditions.com
Or for $500 (and 20% off right now), you can buy it at the MoMa store here

*Each year since 1988, art collector, software entrepreneur, and MoMA trustee Peter Norton has commissioned an art edition to celebrate the Christmas season and holidays. Created by artists represented in the Nortons’ own collection, and sent as gifts to personal friends and members of the art community, these art objects are designed to be interactive and playful, and to foster engagement with the world of contemporary art.

Fun With Skype Screen Grabs By James Callahan.

I figured it wouldn't be long until we began seeing more and more 'art' made from the latest tech apps and devices. We've already seen a wonderful series of illustrated versions of You Tube's most popular videos and seen how the New Yorker Magazine has featured covers created with an iPhone painting app.



Now, UK advertising art director, illustrator and photographer James Callahan has had some fun with screengrabs of his Skype video chats. His ongoing project which he calls Screengrabography is simply his superimposing of screen grabs from Skype chats over stock photos or art.

They are not super impressively composed or even that inventive (men's heads on women's bodies), but they are fun nevertheless and certainly simple enough for almost anyone to do. The results are good for a chuckle. And may just inspire you to start making a few of your own.





Extra points to James' friends Daisy and Joseph for being such good sports.


See James Callahan's portfolio here which includes some very impressive advertising and design work.

Zac Freeman's Amazing Portraits Made With The Stuff In Your Junk Drawer.

You know all that stuff you either toss away of throw in the kitchen 'junk' drawer? Buttons, old remote controls, pen caps, paper clips, Altoid tins, Lego Minifigs, wire, plastic bits and pieces from lord-knows-what? Well those are precisely what artist Zac Freeman uses in creating these one of a kind portraits.


above: portrait of Jerry and Jerry detail

Beginning in 1999, Zac began collecting junk, found objects, and general trash which he then glued to wooden substrate to form an image -- in these cases, faces of men and women. His assemblage artworks are made on a large scale (the pieces average about 28" by 35") and when viewed close up look like crap cobbled together with a hot glue gun, but when viewed from afar are impressive, compelling and simply beautiful portraits.


above: Zac Freeman's portrait of Garrett (detail) and mouth (close-up)

His finished works combine the best aesthetic qualities of Chuck Close and Bernard Pras and that's saying something.

Garrett:

Garrett (detail):

Holly:

Holly (detail):

Ryan:

Ryan (detail):

Courtney:

Courtney (detail):

Bryan:

Bryan (detail):

Vince:

Vince(detail):

The artist's self portrait:

detail:


David, below, is his recent addition to the Woolff Gallery:

Zac at work in his studio:


above two images courtesy of Woolff Gallery

In the artist's own words:
"I was interested in communicating through visual representation in apparent 2-dimensional space and through the actual objects used for the medium in 3-dimensional space. It is very important to me that I incorporate the actual objects into the art as opposed to a picture or rendition of it because it better expresses the intention of the artwork. I feel the junk is more powerful being present. It is an actual thing to be reckoned with that existed in this time and place and carries energy in and of itself."

all images courtesy of the artist
Zac Freeman Art

For commission requests or inquiries about Zac's work please contact Nick Woolff of the Woolff Gallery.