Nespresso Commissions Coffee Cup Stain Portrait of Lucio Dalla in Milan.

I first introduced you to the beautiful and talented Hong "Red" Yi with her unusual portrait of Chinese film director Zhang Yimou created with 750 pair of socks. Most recently she was commissioned by the Milan Nespresso Boutique to create a portrait of the late Italian singer Lucio Dalla out of coffee cup ring stains.


above: Singer Lucio Dalla passed away this past March

Red, who is known for working in unusual mediums, created the piece onsite in Milan:




The final piece:

The unveiling of the piece at the Nespresso Boutique in Milan:



The piece will be displayed in the Milan Nespresso boutique, then given to the mayor of Bologna, who, according to Red, plans to hang it in a museum that they will be building for Lucio.

images and info courtesy of Red (Hong Yi) who now has a new website.

Art Assault. 23 Artists Transform Decommissioned AK-47 Rifles In The Name Of Peace. ALL The Pieces From The AKA Peace Exhibition.

The most celebrated names in Contemporary Art united for Peace One Day, to react against the horror of violence globally, with ‘AKA Peace’.



Creating brand new works for a blockbuster autumn exhibition, curated by Jake Chapman in collaboration with non-profit organization Peace One Day, these artists have each reinterpreted an AK-47 assault rifle – the most recognizable and devastating worldwide killing machine – as arresting artworks of intrigue and even beauty; recasting a weapon of devastation as a conduit to peace.

Below are images of all the pieces:

Jake and Dinos Chapman:


Damien Hirst:

detail:

Antony Gormley:


Sam Taylor Wood:

detail:

Gavin Turk:

Solange Azagury-Partridge:

detail:

Rebecca Warren:

Stuart Semple (aka NIMROD):

Tim Noble and Sue Webster:

detail:

Douglas Gordon:


Jeremy Deller:

Marc Quinn:

Ryan Gander:

Jim Lambie:

Langlands & Bell:


Mat Collishaw:


Harland Miller:

detail:

Bran Symondson:

detail:

Sarah Lucas:


Charming Baker:

Antony Micallef:

Nancy Fouts:

detail:

Laila Shawa:

detail:


Here are a few beautiful portraits of the artists by Bran Symondson for his Cease Fire Magazine photo essay on the project:

Charming Baker:

Jake Chapman:

Tim Noble and Sue Webster:

Solange Azagury-Partridge:

Antony Micallef:

see more here

The AKA Peace Trailer:


The exhibition, originally conceived by photographer Bran Symondson and now curated by artist Jake Chapman, coincided with Peace Day, Friday 21 September 2012 and will raise awareness of Peace Day and raise funds for Peace One Day’s Global Truce 2013 campaign.

Jeremy Gilley, founder of Peace One Day said, “AKA Peace is a really profound project; turning a weapon of destruction into a weapon of peace is awesome. The benefits of awareness and finance to help Global Truce 2013 is a great outcome. I’m grateful to Bran for having a wonderful idea and it’s an honour to have Jake Chapman curate the project.” Peace Day 2012 will be marked by the Peace One Day Concert, at Wembley Arena in London. Headlining the concert will be Elton John, alongside James Morrison and 2Cellos.

The ICA exhibition of AKA Peace runs from 26 until 30 September at the Institute of Contemporary Art before the pieces are auctioned at Phillips de Pury & Company on 4th October to raise funds and awareness for Peace One Day and Global Truce 2013.

For more information please visit: www.peaceoneday.org/aka-peace

Bran Symondson took the majority of the photos shown in this post. The Damien Hirst image is courtesy of Damien Hirst, The Jim Lambie image is courtesy of Ruth Clark via Phillips de Pury. Other images courtesy of Peace One Day.