After Enlightenment, the laundry.
That is my favorite Zen proverb. Certainly the word Zen has been absorbed by popular culture and it would be disingenuous of me to pretend to be very knowledgable of that religious practice. Still, its premise of being mindful and accepting of right now, this moment is inspiring and something to strive for.
As in saying yes to learning new things. Even if it means feeling like a fool at the beginning. I think this is one of the hardest things for me, I have always disliked being new at things. Maybe it started with the 20 stitches in the chin from learning square dancing in 3rd grade. Square dancing. At least I won a cake at the cakewalk later that year.
Challenging myself to learn a few new things this year, am planning on a couple of computer classes - let's hope there is no emergency room involved.
Photo by Cig Harvey, check out her lovely work here.
{It was either that or Xanex, folks, not that many options with the letter x.} They may use an x-acto knife or scissors , either way, a number of talented contemporary artists are reviving the art of papercutting. I love Rob Ryan's work for its quirky charm and folk sensibility.
Annie Vought created the intriguing works below. Looking forward to seeing the direction her work takes.
I am also inspired by the many vintage paper craft books that I own, each with a section on paper cutting. It is interesting to see how this art has been traditionally practiced in many cultures across the world. I have tried my own hand at it for a few commercial projects, but have set aside some special 'finds' to attack with the x-acto for some personal projects. If you find yourself inspired by papercutting, a reminder that the ever-talented Amy at Angry Chicken has a great set of download papercut patterns here.
Edward Young once gave a perfect and simple definition- wonder is involuntary praise. Perhaps that is why children seem much more able to find themselves engaged in wonder or awe, because they have no mechanism to remain guarded or reserved, it is purely involuntary. Nature inspires this response of wonder - who hasn't been engaged by a small tuft of cushion moss or a magnificent mushroom?
We, in turn, respond to this sense of wonder. Capture it in a stunning photo or study and render its every detail.
The vintage mushroom print is from Housemartin. I love scientific illustrations like this and of course, would love to have a bookshelf with this, this and this.
The three pictures above are certainly a testament to wonder - how it can inspire an artist and the response that the artist's work, in turn, can evoke - those are origami paper mushrooms created by French artist Vincent Floderer. I was so thrilled to stumble upon his work quite a while back through Ulla. See more of his incredible works here as well as this tutorial.
There are so many great blogs out there, it is scary. These are few that I like that focus mainly on vintage items and design. In addition to all sorts of great stuff, Reference Library showcases items not won on Ebay.
Photo via Reference Library
Anonymous Works shares covet-worthy folk art and antiques and unusual vintage photographs and tintypes.
Photo via Anonymous Works
Grain Edit is always a visual treat. It focuses on design work from the 50's to the 70'. The site includes period ephemera, interviews and book reviews.
Photo via Grain Edit
As I love looking for inspiration in unexpected places or materials, so too do I love coming across work that creates something utterly intriguing from the unexpected. Butterflies from discarded beer cans or recycled records would certainly qualify. By Paul Villinski.
This pop up book by Marion Bataille is so, so freaking brilliant. This video is of a prototype, the book will not be available until October 2008, which happens to be THE SAME MONTH AS MY BIRTHDAY.
via Notcot
One's experiences traveling can be extraordinarily stimulating and are certainly unmatched, but even if your passport is not getting an inky kiss anytime soon, inspiration can be found in travel ephemera. The vintage European pieces above via ffffound. Thanks to Rachel, I was reminded of Troy M. Litton's Wanderlust collection of postcards, journals and books and was introduced to his Troyland Cultural Awareness Programs, which includes the two photos below and is a visual archive of everything from cigarette packaging from all over the world to a photo collage of colorful fire hydrants. Don't miss his Airline Bag Lounge, an enviable collection of vintage airliner bags.
Photos above from Troyland
Yes, it might seem strange to go from quoting a French philosopher to a Muppet. I had the fortune of catching Bert's encore performance of this tune last week on Sesame Street, and although he is made out of velour and someone's hand is, well, you know where, it is still spot on - when I study, really look at even the most common of things, inspiration and beauty can usually be found.
