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."
Traditional and modern chairs take on a new dimension when upholstered in the hand-knit textiles of Melanie Porter. From tub chairs to wing chairs, Chippendales to Egg chairs, Melanie painstakingly strips them of their original upholstery and then covers each chair in her hand knit panels of cable knits, patchwork, cross-stitch, and crochet. Details like hand covered buttons, pom pom accents, union jacks, painted frames and color combinations best show off the textiles.
Melanie's chairs are cozy and inviting one-of-a-kind functional art pieces. She even gives them human names, which only add to their appeal. Here's a look at several of her unique chairs.
Nora chair:
Lottie chair:
Olivia chair:
Bob chair:
Will chair:
Pip and Pen chairs:
Albert chair:
George chair:
Gilbert chair:
Bertie chair:
Tabby chair:
In addition to the chairs, Melanie makes and sells hand-knit cushions using Italian Merino wools.
Percy (Union jack) Cushions in two colorways:
Daffy, Honeycomb and Quod cushions: images courtesy of Furfin, Melanie Porter and Mydeco.
About Melanie Porter:
After 10 years working as a knitwear designer for a number of international fashion brands, Melanie has turned her expertise to furniture, creating one-off contemporary designs from chairs sourced from auctions and markets across the UK.
Melanie undertakes the entire process herself and everything, from the restoration and upholstering to the individual, crocheted buttons, is done by hand. The result of this incredibly labor-intensive process is a stunning and unique work of art, destined to be a future family heirloom.
Headcase™, in partnership with The Ohio Art Company, has just introduced the first and only officially licensed Etch A Sketch® iPad case! Now, the world’s most popular drawing toy provides a fun backdrop for the most revolutionary device ever conceived by Apple.
Etch A Sketch® is celebrating its 50th year and over 150 million units sold. The iPad sold over 3 million units in its first 80 days, prompting the USA Today front-page article: “Etch A Sketch: The 1960’s iPad”.
Daniel Deutsch, CEO of Headcase explains, “Etch A Sketch® has been one of the most recognized and iconic toys for generations. The iPad, like the Etch A Sketch®, is also instantly recognizable and has defined an entirely new category of technology. It has been a thrill to work with Ohio Art to bring the look and the feel of the world’s most popular drawing toy to Apple’s latest opus. It is the perfect accessory for those of us who never really grew up.”
While the Etch A Sketch® iPad case looks like America’s favorite toy, there has been equal attention placed on making it a high quality protective case. Made of impact resistant ABS plastic, the Etch A Sketch® iPad case will help protect your iPad. Rubber feet and a felt backing gently cradle your iPad inside the Etch A Sketch® iPad case.
Strategically placed windows throughout the Etch A Sketch® iPad case allow for easy use of all your iPad switches, ports, and buttons.
A retractable kick stand allowS you to either lay your iPad flat, or angle it for easy use of the keyboard.
The Etch a Sketch® iPad case is available for purchase for $39.00 USD here
FAQ
I’ve heard horror stories about some iPad cases overheating iPads. Will that happen with my Etch A Sketch® iPad case? No. Unlike many silicone or leather iPad cases, the Etch A Sketch® iPad case is designed to let your iPad have the proper ventilation for cooling.
Will I be able to easily access my switches, ports, and buttons? Yes. The Etch A Sketch® iPad case was designed specifically for the iPad – it may look like an Etch A Sketch®, but no corners were cut in making it the highest quality iPad case possible.
Is Headcase the only maker of the Etch A Sketch® iPad case? Yes, Headcase™ has an exclusive agreement with Ohio Art, the makers of Etch A Sketch®. The Etch A Sketch® iPad case is the only officially licensed iPad product available anywhere.
Will the Etch A Sketch® iPad case help protect my iPad? Of course. While no iPad case can make any specific guarantees, the Etch A Sketch® iPad case is made of impact resistant plastic. We are proud of the Etch A Sketch® iPad case’s durability.
Headcase™ is a division of Real Simple Ideas LLC, an Orlando, FL based product development company. With in-house design and prototyping capabilities, ideas go from conception to distribution in record time. Headcase™ is a trademark of Real Simple Ideas, LLC. Etch A Sketch® is a trademark of The Ohio Art Company iPad™ is a trademark of Apple®, inc.
You may have seen or read some blog posts and news articles about this futuristic fashion innovation which consists of spray-on clothing. The idea has been in the works for over a decade and the patent for Fabrican was filed in 2000. Starting a few weeks ago, news reports, magazines like Wired, fashion and trend blogs like Trendland and more began covering the concept yet again.
Just last week, the Spring/ Summer 2011 collection of the spray-on couture was showcased at a fashion show at Imperial College London. I've got some of those images for you so now you can really some some wild results of this technological future of fashion.
The show is a culmination of 10 years of work by Dr. Torres, who has collaborated with Professor Paul Luckham, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemical technology, to create a seamless material called Fabrican Spray-on fabric. The technology enables designers to spray liquid material directly onto the body, using aerosol technology, which dries instantly to make innovative clothes that can be washed and re-worn.
More than 300 key figures from industry, academia, fashion and the media came to the College to see Dr. Manel Torres (shown above with the models in the show's finale), Spanish fashion designer and academic visitor at Imperial, unveil his 2011 Spring/Summer Collection at the Science in Style Fashion Show. The event celebrated design-led technology developed at Imperial.
Behind the scenes, creating the dressed for the show:
So, what is Fabrican?
Fabrican ltd. is the creator of Spray-on Fabric, or couture in a can. A technological innovation that will not only lighten your vacation packing, but can also be used in medical, automotive and other numerous applications.
Some history for you:
In 2000 Fabrican patented an instant, sprayable, non-woven fabric. Developed through a collaboration between Imperial College London and the Royal College of Art, Fabrican technology has captured the imagination of designers, industry and the public around the world.
The technology has been developed for use in household, industrial, personal and healthcare, decorative and fashion applications using aerosol cans or spray-guns, and will soon be found in products available everywhere.
In the late 1990's, Manel Torres conceived the idea for Spray-on Fabric while studying for his MA in Fashion Women's Wear, Royal College of Art, London. Aware of the slow process of constructing garments, Manel investigated novel ways to speed up this process. Manel's foresight and vision led him to think of developing a material that would almost magically fit the body like a second skin and at the same time have the appearance of clothing. The original concept was to utilize Spray-on Fabric in the fashion industry. However, the technology has the potential to revolutionize and enhance numerous market areas.
One example would be the "Nicotine chair"shown below. Given developments in the pharma/biotech industry, and the flexible adhesive properties of Fabrican's technology, slow release systems like that of nicotine can be absorbed by sitting on a chair sprayed with Fabrican.
Manel Torres obtained his PhD at the Royal College of Art and then in 2000, filed a patent for the Spray-On Fabric technology. During his PhD research, his work was supervised by Dr Susannah Handley (Royal College of Art) and Professor Paul Luckham (Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London). Fabrican is focused on the research and development of Spray-on Fabric which can then be used across a number of market sectors; medical, automotive and fashion. Fabrican's mission is to develop prototype products, in collaboration with leading industrial partners, leading to commercial exploits and applications.
Science and fashion in collaboration, Fabrican spray-on fabric will liberate designers to create new and unique garments, offer a carrier technology for delivery of fragrance or even medical active substances, and allow the wearer to personalize their wardrobe in infinite combinations. New textures and material characteristics are a matter of adjusting chemistry. In addition to fashion, the technology is opening new vistas, offering sprayable material for any application requiring a fabric coating. The technology opens new vistas for personalized fashion, allowing individual touches to be added to manufactured garments, or even impromptu alterations. Garments could incorporate fragrances, active substances, or conductive materials to interface with information technology. After a decade of research, this futuristic vision is taking shape.
Fabrican is a rare achievement in transforming a dream to practical realisation. Through combination of clever exploitation of people’s immediate fascination with the spray-on fabric, and Manel’s extraordinary ability to motivate multi-disciplinary collaboration, Fabrican has brought interest and worldwide media coverage.
