Rain Room by Random International

I so totally want to walk through the Rain Room and sit on a dry park bench with a cup of tea while the rain pours around me ...and I stay completely dry.

I bet that experience totally rocks.



Rain Room at the Barbican from rAndom International on Vimeo.

Omer Arbel's Bocci 14 Chandelier

Is there a support group for people with an intense attraction to expensive lighting fixtures? If so, I need to join up.

Or start designing them myself.

Today's bit of design eye candy is via Omer Arbel, who labels his projects with numbers instead of names. I'm not sure if project 14 captures that loveliness and romanticism of this chandelier, but the pictures certainly do.

Bocci 14 - Omer Arbel

Bocci 14 - Omer Arbel

Bocci 14 - Omer Arbel

Bocci 14 - Omer Arbel

Art Photography - Jean Berard

Eye candy for today, some art photography from Jean Bérard. I love that these show the motion of liquid OUTSIDE the container, rather than in it.

Stunning work!

Liquid Glass - Art Photography by Jean Bérard Fotografía. 

Liquid Glass - Art Photography by Jean Bérard Fotografía.

Liquid Glass - Art Photography by Jean Bérard Fotografía.

Liquid Glass - Art Photography by Jean Bérard Fotografía.

Andy Harman - The Owl

Andy Harman calls these props. I think it's rather common for artists in their early years to not think of themselves as artists. We call ourselves "craftspeople" but we're really making art. 

Another artist would call this yarn sculpture, or rope sculpture, or macrame sculpture. So, Andy Harman, I dub thee sculptor and artist, not prop maker. Create and be proud. 

Andy Harman - The Owl, Macrame Sculpture

Andy Harman - The Owl, Macrame Sculpture

Andy Harman - The Owl, Macrame Sculpture

Penny Hardy - Metal Sculpture

The picture of "Blown Away" recently surfaced in my Facebook news feed and it really stuck with me. I'm not always a fan of "junk art" but the simplicity and sense of freedom from this piece really did blow me away.

The mental imagery of standing tall while the wind blows your mundane problems off into the ether, leaving you light as a feather and dancing in the grass is just so emotionally appealing. It reminds me of the sense of freedom that I feel standing near crashing ocean waves and realizing how insignificant all my little life dramas really are.

A trip to Penny Hardy's website brought more wonders in metal and is now making me look up metalworking classes over at Long Beach City College. Like I need another hobby.....

Enjoy the beauty!

Penny Hardy - Blown Away - Metal Sculpture

Penny Hardy - Shield 2 - Metal Sculpture

Penny Hardy - Angels in Harlem - Metal Sculpture

Guitar Forest, Argentina

So much beauty and art is created from sadness. I ran across this over at Inhabitat the other day and the images stuck in my mind, along with the story. India may have the Taj Mahal as an everlasting symbol of the deep loss of a love, but Argentina has it's own equally beautiful tribute in the Guitar Forest, planted by Pedro Ureta. 

Guitar Forest of Argentina

Guitar Forest of Argentina

Namba Park, Osaka

While, I'm not much of a fan of shopping, I do love a terraced garden. So, when offered an 8 story shopping center with terraced gardens running throughout, I'd have to give that an emphatic "YES, PLEASE."

This looks so unbelievably lovely from every possible angle and I love the way the inside looks like canyon walls carved from rock. Well played, Namba Parks Shopping Center, well played.

Namba Parks, Osaka, Japan

Namba Parks, Osaka, Japan

Namba Parks, Osaka, Japan