Artists Reinterpret Emoticons In Their Own Style of Work For The Noteworthy Project.

The Noteworthy Project asked different artists to reinterpret emoticons in their own inimitable style. The process and final pieces were documented on film and directed by Oscar-nominated and Sundance-winning filmmaker Jessica Sanders. Below are those films and the final artworks.

:( by Tim Biskup:


“My goal was to present a midpoint between the :( emoticon’s abstraction of sadness and the literal representation of it in the photo of my daughter, thus inserting my own expression into the equation.” - Tim Biskup



Tim Biskup's final piece:


:-) by AJ Fosik:



“I decided to transform the devious emoticon into an idol, taking a digital [way of conveying] emotion and meaning and merging it with a traditional physical one, subverting both to create something new.” - AJ Fosik



AJ. Fosik's final piece:


LOL by Megan Whitmarsh:


“I wanted to create a LOL that radiates optimism, using a handcrafted, analog, pop vision to capture its warmth and cheerfulness.” - Megan Whitmarsh



Megan Whitmarsh's final piece:


OMG by Reza Ali:


“OMG invites its audience to interact by speaking to it. Besides surprise, it can represent joy, sadness, anger, excitement, fear, shock, and relief. OMG changes in real-time to reflect that variation.” - Reza Ali



Reza Ali's final piece:


;) by Craig + Karl:


“The ;) emoticon depicts our dynamic: a closed eye dreaming, forming ideas; an open eye, developing them. A smile links us.” - Craig and Karl



Craig Redmond + Karl Maier's final piece:


About The Noteworthy Project:


Our potential for human expression is huge, but at some point technology started getting in the way of our passion. We’ve been so busy tweeting and texting, we may have accidentally left behind what makes us human.

The Noteworthy Project documents a series of projects that examine what happens when communication is made by hand.

Noteworthyproject.com

LaChapelle's Earth Laughs In Flowers. The Photographer's Take on Baroque Still Lives.

above: Lovers (detail) by David LaChapelle

In this new series of ten works photographer David LaChapelle, best known for his wild and elaborate fashion photography, he explores the vanity of life and beauty. With titles such as “Springtime”, “Late Summer”, “Early Fall” and “Deathless Winter” the works refer to the four seasons and allude to the life cycle: from birth to death. A contemporary take on the still life paintings of Flemish and Italian masters, these ornate florals contain references to present day culture and humanity, such as cigarette butts, Barbies, junk food, toys and telephones.

Summer:

Springtime:

detail:

Early Fall:

detail:

Deathless Winter:

detail:

America:

Concerning the Soul:

Risk:

Flaccid Passions:

Lovers:

Wilting Gossip:

detail:


from the press release:
The title of the series is a quotation of the poem “Hamatreya” by Ralph Waldo Emerson, in which flowers are the earth’s laughter at the arrogance of human beings who believe they can rule the earth, although they themselves are transient and must return to it.

The title of the exhibition can also be read in the sense of the Baroque vanitas portrayals. The meaning of the Baroque floral still life was always related to the human hubris and transience of earthly existence, with the classical still life often containing many of the following: flowers, fruits, vegetables, animals, insects, mask, candles, watches or skulls. These symbols denote the fugacity and limitations of human life and the meaningless nature of vanity. Just like wilting flowers, albeit their beauty, we will all fade away.

Whilst LaChapelle shows an explicit compositional affinity to Baroque floral still life, he transfers the genre from painting to photography. The artist employs art historical visual traditions, but he also translates them into visual metaphor of and for our time. On second glance the viewer will discover objects of contemporary society in the blooming and fading flower arrangements: burning cigarettes, newspapers from yesterday, old mobile phones, plastic, Barbies, a Manga mask, medical devices, a burning American flag, a model of an airplane, balloons, tins, collages, throw away dinnerware or a tattered dollar bill. These are the metaphors of vanity in our era of an affluent though seemingly troubled society. The often bizarre and excessive symbolical imagery does not fail to remind us however, as in the traditional vanitas, to follow our virtues and to celebrate life before it‘s over.

‘Where are these men? Asleep beneath their grounds: And strangers, fond as they, their furrows plough. Earth laughs in flowers, to see her boastful boys Earth-proud, proud of the earth which is not theirs; Who steer the plough, but cannot steer their feet, Clear of the grave.’ -- Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), Hamatreya, 1846

The series of photographs by David LaChapelle, ‘Earth Laughs in Flowers’ was first shown at Hannover’s Kestnergesellschaft Museum in spring 2011. Since then the exhibit -in conjunction with ROBILANT + VOENA has been presented to the British, Italian and Swiss public, across its two galleries in London and Milan, as well as the Reformierte Dorfkirche, St. Moritz in collaboration with ST.MORITZ ART MASTERS. Now, In collaboration with Fred Torres, the show is now being exhibited in New York.

Earth Laughs In Flowers
Exhibition on view February 23rd through March 24th, 2012. Open to the public, Monday through Saturday from 10am to 6pm. Student groups always welcome.
527 W 29th Street, 3FL, New York NY, 10001

Turning Text Into Art. Intricately Altered Books by Brian Dettmer.

above: Brian Dettmer, Webster Withdrawn, 2010

above: Brian Dettmer, Absolute Authority, 2011

Taking medical texts, encylopedias, dictionaries, historical texts and other reference tomes, artist Brian Dettmer creates intricate sculptures. Carving up covers, interior pages, images and words to create layers and assembling the books with great dimensionality, his works create narratives that demand the viewer's investigation. Photos won't do them justice, so if you ever get the chance to see them in person, do! (upcoming shows are listed at the end of this post)

Complete Guide, 2011:

Complete Guide (detail), 2011:

The Brain, 2011:

The Brain (detail), 2011:

Smith's Scientific Series, full and detail, 2011:

There's Nothing To Fear, 2011:

There's Nothing To Fear (detail), 2011:

Macmillan, 2011:

Saturation Will Result, 2011:
 
Macmillan (detail), 2011:
 
The Facts on File, 2011:

Totem, 2011: 
 
Tower of Babble, 2011:
 
Universal Standard, 2011 and American Peoples, 2011:

American Peoples, 2011 (detail):

American Peoples (close up), 2011:

Prose and Poetry of the World, 2011:

Compiled Upon A New Plan, 2010:
 
Encylopedias of World Travel, 2010:
Goya, 2010:

The House of Tongues:

The March of Democracy, 2010:

The ROTC Manual, 2010:
 
The Story of Man, 2010:
 
Military Preventative Medicine, 2010:

The Volume Library, 2010:

Wagnall's Wheel, 2010:


Artist's Statement:
The age of information in physical form is waning. As intangible routes thrive with quicker fluidity, material and history are being lost, slipping and eroding into the ether. Newer media swiftly flips forms, unrestricted by the weight of material and the responsibility of history. In the tangible world we are left with a frozen material but in the intangible world we may be left with nothing. History is lost as formats change from physical stability to digital distress.

The richness and depth of the book is universally respected yet often undiscovered as the monopoly of the form and relevance of the information fades over time. The book’s intended function has decreased and the form remains linear in a non-linear world. By altering physical forms of information and shifting preconceived functions, new and unexpected roles emerge. This is the area I currently operate in. Through meticulous excavation or concise alteration I edit or dissect communicative objects or systems such as books, maps, tapes and other media. The medium’s role transforms. Its content is recontextualized and new meanings or interpretations emerge.

Explanation of Process:
In this work I begin with an existing book and seal its edges, creating an enclosed vessel full of unearthed potential. I cut into the surface of the book and dissect through it from the front. I work with knives, tweezers and surgical tools to carve one page at a time, exposing each layer while cutting around ideas and images of interest. Nothing inside the books is relocated or implanted, only removed. Images and ideas are revealed to expose alternate histories and memories. My work is a collaboration with the existing material and its past creators and the completed pieces expose new relationships of the book’s internal elements exactly where they have been since their original conception.

Brian gives a quick-paced, informal 6 minute talk about his work in the video below:


Bio:
Dettmer is originally from Chicago. He currently resides in Atlanta, GA.

Brian Dettmer is known for his detailed and innovative sculptures with books and other forms of antiquated media. He is currently represented by Kinz + Tillou (New York), Packer Schopf (Chicago), MiTO (Barcelona), Toomey Tourell (San Francisco) and Saltworks (Atlanta). Dettmer’s work has been exhibited Internationally in several galleries, museums and art centers including the Museum of Arts and Design (NY), Museum of Contemporary Art (GA), the International Museum of Surgical Science (IL), Museum Rijswijh (Netherlands), Wellcome Collection (England) the Bellevue Arts Museum (WA), The Kohler Arts Center (WI), and the Illinois State Museums (IL). His work can be found in several public and private collections throughout the U.S, Latin America, Europe, Australia and Asia.

Dettmer’s work has gained International acclaim through internet bloggers, and traditional media. His work has been featured on the CBS Evening News, The New York Times (US), The Los Angeles Times (US), The Guardian (UK), The Telegraph (UK) Chicago Tribune (US), The Age (AU), Art News, Modern Painters, Wired, The Village Voice, Harper’s, Esquire and National Public Radio among others.

In recent years Dettmer has established himself as one of the leading International contemporary artists working with the book today. In 2011 his work was featured on the cover of Book Art (Gestalten Publishers, Berlin) and discussed in a historical context in Bookwork (Stewart, The University of Chicago Press). In 2012 he is scheduled to have solo shows in San Francisco with Toomey Tourell Fine Art and The Jewish Community Center; in Maribor, Slovenia as part of its celebration as the European Cultural Capital of 2012; in Lucca, Italy for Cartasia, a biennale of contemporary paper art; and in Atlanta, GA at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia. His work is also scheduled to be in several group shows including “40 under 40” at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian Institute.

Upcoming Solo Shows:
• Brian Dettmer, October 20, 2012 – January 5, 2013 Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia (MOCA-GA), Atlanta, GA

• Brian Dettmer, Selected Works, February – March 2012, Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA

• Brian Dettmer, Textonomy, February 2 – March 17, 2012, Toomey Tourell Fine Art, San Francisco, CA
all images courtesy of the artist

Brian Dettmer