Winter Magic. Spellbinding Photographs by Per Breiehagen For Italian Children's Brand Chicco.

I came across these stunning winter landscapes by photographer Per Breiehagen and discovered that they began as a personal project and blossomed into an international ad campaign.




In 2007 Breiehagen photographed his three year old daughter Anja, styled by his wife Lori Evert, as a traditional Nordic elf near his home in Minnesota. The images expertly and magically captured the holiday spirit for his personal Christmas cards.

Several of these images are also available in this lovely children's book, The Christmas Wish.





Encouraged by the feedback, Breiehagen embarked on a much larger project. Born and raised in Norway, his childhood had centered around the fairytales and lore that are rich in Norwegian culture. Stories of elves, trolls and other creatures have inspired his narratives, instilling a sense of magic and mystery in his imagery. “Growing up in a storytelling tradition, these mental images would always be there and certainly influenced my creativity,” he says.





The first round of images went to Getty Images to be used as stock photography. Within a year, the elf girl series had been picked up by agencies in South America, Northern Europe and Asia for a variety of advertising and editorial campaigns, including AT&T. In 2010 ad agency McCann Erickson used the images for Italian baby brand Chicco's holiday campaign.




This year, Breiehagen has worked again with McCann Erickson to shoot his daughter Anja in an exclusive set of images for the 2011 Chicco brand holiday campaign, making the sweet little elf in the red cap the icon for the brand.


above: One of the images as used on Chicco's website.

The images can be seen on billboards, on television, in print and on their web site throughout this holiday season.














Breiehagen and wife Evert are now actively on the hunt for a publisher to create a Christmas book featuring these images. Anja is getting older but Breiehagen hopes her legacy as the little elf girl will continue to represent a timeless holiday spirit.

I have chosen my favorites from his Winter Magic Series to place in this post, to see all the shots, visit Per Breiehagen's site.

To learn more about the props, styling and digital compositing for these beautiful images, read Jacqui Palumbo's detailed article on this project for PDN, here.

all images courtesy of Per Breiehagen

The Modern Letter Opener from Hannah Martin London Is Now Available.

Hannah Martin of London, known for their elegant and modern jewelry designs, was set the task of reinventing the traditional letter opener by Wallpaper* Magazine earlier this year, as part of their 'Handmade' Issue.



above: sketches and protoypes of the letter opener

They had so many requests to put this into production, they caved under popular demand and have put the beautiful desk accessory into production in three finishes.

Anthracite Grey (solid brass with a grey powder-coated finish):



Intense Navy (solid brass with a navy blue powder-coated finish):



Silver (solid brass with heavy sterling silver plate):



The beautiful modern letter opener goes on sale Friday (tomorrow) at London's Design Museum in Anthracite Grey or Intense Navy. But it's available to purchase NOW at their online site, HannahMartinLondon.com, along with an exclusive sterling silver plated edition.

As with their jewels, this letter opener is handmade from start to finish in London.

The Beautiful Vases, Dogs and Cats of Gary Steinborn and his Venice Clay Studio.

The Venice Clay Studio features the talented ceramic crafts of Los Angeles born artist Gary Steinborn. Inspired by the work of arts and craft factories such as Grueby, Pewabic, Teco and Rookwood, his sculpted animals and artful vases are sensual, modern and appealing. The figurines and tabletop objects combine a zen sensibility with arts and crafts design. Very reasonably priced, any of these pieces make wonderful gifts for others or yourself.




Artfully sculpted Buddha Cats, Buddha Dogs, Polar Bears, Elephants, Pet Urns, Dog and Puppies, Cat and Kittens, incense burners and more come in various sizes and your choice of 24 matte glazes. The sizes range from little puppies and kittens a few inches high up to sculptures and vases thirteen inches tall.

The Dogs:





Buddha Dogs:

The Cats:





Buddha Cats and Incense Burners:



Polar Bears and Elephants:


Dog and Cat Vases:


Dog and Cat Urns:



The Bella Vase ceramics are colorful vases with elegant silhouettes that would be a stunning complement to any interior. Venice Clay studio has several different styles and sizes, all of which are beautiful and some of which are shown below.

Vases:







The Glazes:
All of the artwork is available in 24 matt glaze colors. In addition, the figurines are available in celadon and white crackle finishes:



About the artist:


About Gary Steinborn, in his own words:
"I had my first studio over thirty years ago on the front porch of my family's California bungalow home. Working there on a homemade potter's wheel and sculpting clay by hand when I was a teenager started the journey that led me to a Masters Degree in Art from UCLA.



Growing up in Los Angeles I was exposed multi-cultural influences and all kinds of art. In my work I try to synthesize influences ranging from the heritage of the American crafts movement to funk and pop art. All the pieces I offer at Venice Clay are my original designs. My goal is to produce ceramics that is immaculately crafted, intelligent and humorous - suitable for anything from a modernist to craftsman style homes or personal Zen retreat. "

The Venice Clay Web Site features Venice Clay figurines and Bella Vase ceramics and allows collectors and distributors of Gary Steinborn's artwork to view the entire collection of items and colors available for purchase.

All the figurines and artworks you see in this post are copyrighted designs by Gary and Venice Clay Studio an the images have been used with their permission.