Late last summer, the now infamous Station Fire hit Los Angeles County. The largest fire to ever hit the area, it destroyed over 250 acres of Angeles National Forest. Less than a year later, organizer Joy Feuer, in partnership with the Glendale Parks & Open Space Foundation, has launched “ART from the Ashes,” an eco-art exhibition of 100+ pieces donated by 64 artists, each created from salvaged materials gathered from Deukmejian Wilderness Park (several images below).

Showing at the Glendale Parks & Open Space Foundation now through July 24th, the show spans a variety of mediums: a stop-motion short film, fashion pieces, ceramics glazed with ash from the Park, salvaged metal acting as a canvas for painting, and fallen tree branches incorporated into multi media work, to name a few. And every piece in the exhibit celebrates the ideas of sustainability and renewal.

In addition to the artwork itself, the exhibit setting pays tribute to Deukmejian Wilderness Park’s raw materials. At the center of the room, a plot of decomposed granite is framed by suspended, reclaimed window frames. Art is placed in the sand as if it were created then and there. Massive scorched tree branches are anchored throughout, reminiscent of the actual aftermath of the park.

A suggested donation of $5 upon entrance to the exhibition goes to raise funds for the restoration of Deukmejian Wilderness Park.

Location:
ART from the Ashes Gallery
216 S. Brand Blvd
Glendale, CA 91204

Suggested donation $5.
The exhibition continues through July 24th with special event programming throughout.
Gallery open Tues-Sunday 12-6pm.
www.artfromtheashes.org

*above: Philip Lumbang’s “New Life,” painted on a found metal Deuk object.

*above: Rick McLean’s “Animated Coal Puppet,” a 3 minute stop motion animation story art submission.

*above: Christopher Casanova’s “Deuk Arches,” Deukmajian Wilderness Park, San Gabriel Mountains, CA. Photography and video installation. Stone arches installed in Park by artist in multiple locations, then photographed and filmed for Gallery installation.

*above: Karen Sikie’s “Still Standing #1,” mixed media, charcoal & watercolor, 23″x30″.

*above: James Carbone’s “Oak Tree,” black and white photographs, 8×10.

*above: GWEN SAMUELS Gwen Samuels’ “Spring,” salvaged springs. digital images, printed on transparent film, hand-stitched.

above: Fashion by Corinne Grassini, Owner/Designer of Society for Rational Dress. The dress’s neckpiece is repurposed debris from the fire.

Strude, the title of Danish photographer Trine Søndergaard‘s first solo exhibit at Bruce Silverstein Gallery, refers to the mask-like garment traditionally worn by women on the Danish island of Fanø to cover their faces from the wind, sun and sand. Today, this folk costume is worn only for an annual fête day, and so over the last three years, Søndergaard visited the island for this celebration. Each time, she photographed women by a window in a small attic as they dressed for the festivities.

Though the Strude series is not a direct study of either the place or the women’s clothing, the series expresses Søndergaard’s fascination with the culture on the island and with folk costume as the bearer of meaning and specific codes. At the same time, they reflect Søndergaard’s interest in the viewer’s perception of imagery.

The contemporary women in these photographs seem to be of another place and time, classically posed, costumed, and seated in a room where chronological signifiers have been purposefully erased. The seemingly straightforward images are in fact loaded: the current polemic of veiling, the incongruity between the clothing and the time period, and the inward gaze of the sitter provoke the viewer to pause and contemplate these photographs and their meaning. Søndergaard’s attention to almost imperceptible moods and elements – how much is visible, what is said and what is unsaid, what is exposed and what is unexposed – makes them intoxicating.

Strude is open through July 2nd.

Trine Søndergaard: Strude
Bruce Silverstein Gallery
535 West 24th Street
New York, NY 10011
T: 212. 627. 3930
www.brucesilverstein.com

*above, Strude #17

*above, Strude #16

*above, Strude #19

*above, Strude #20

*All images © Trine Søndergaard, courtesy of Bruce Silverstein Gallery, NY.

The warm summer months call for lighter dishes, and provide a whole new palette of seasonal cooking ingredients. In that vein, Recipes from an Italian Summer – the latest offering from the authors of the best-selling Italian cooking bible, The Silver Spoon – features 380 recipes for summertime entertaining. Each dish celebrates simple, seasonal ingredients – like fresh herbs, veggies and fruits – perfect for impromptu picnics and barbecues or more sophisticated dinner parties. With summer drinks, salads, light supper dishes and desserts, this is a fantastic resource for those who want to enjoy la dolce vita. The recipes are easy to follow, and presented beside stunning photographs of Italy by world renowned photographer Joel Meyerowitz and food photography by award-winning, London-based photographer Andy Sewell.

Not totally convinced? Then try it for yourself! To get your tastebuds excited, we’ve got two great recipes below – for watermelon smoothies and cold octopus and eggplant salad – courtesy of publisher Phaidon.

*above: Milanese Minestrone

*above: Chilled Wine with Strawberries

*above: Summer Stuffed Peppers

RECIPES…

Watermelon Smoothies:
(Frullato di cocomero)

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Serves: 1
Ingredients: 1 slice watermelon, peeled, seeded and cut into pieces; juice of 1/2 orange, strained; juice of 1/2 lemon, strained; scant 1/2 cup dry sparkling white wine, chilled; 1 tablespoon superfine sugar; 1 small, unpeeled watermelon triangle, to decorate

Instructions:
Put the watermelon, orange jice and lemon juice into a blender and blend until smooth. Transfer to a pitcher, pour in the wine, stir in the sugar until dissolved, and serve in a tall glass decorated with a small triangle of watermelon.

Cold Octopus & Eggplant Salad:
(insalata di polpo freddo e melanzane)

Preparation time: 3 hours, including marinating and cooling
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients: 2 eggplants, thinly sliced lengthwise; 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling; 1 clove garlic, crushed; 1 fresh red chile, seeded & chopped; 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley; 3/4 cup white-wine vinegar; 2 & 1/4 pounds octopus, 2 tablespoons capers preserved in salt, rinsed, drained and chopped; 12 black olives, pitted and sliced; 4 tomatoes, cut into wedges; 4-5 basil leaves

Instructions:
Heat a nonstick skillet, sear the eggplant slices for a few minutes, turning once, then remove from the heat and put them into a salad bowl. In a separate skillet, heat the olive oil with the garlic and chile. Add teh parslety and vinegar, bring to a boil, and pour the mixture over the eggplants, then let marinate for two hours.

Meanwhile, if it has not already been cleaned, prepare the octopus. Turn the body inside out, and pull away innards and stiff strips that stick to the sides. Cut off the stomach sac. Rinse the octopus thoroughly under cold running water and turn the body right side out. Press out the beak and its soft surrounding tissue from the center of the tentacles and cut it out. Finally, beat it well with a meat mallet. Put the octopus into a large pan of lightly salted, boiling water. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until tender.

Remove the pan from the heat and let the octopus cool in the cooking water. When the octopus is cool, skin it and cut into very thin slices. Add the slices to the eggplants, then add the capers and olives, and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil, and garnish with the tomatoes and basil leaves.

Recipes from an Italian Summer
Published by Phaidon Press, 2010
432 pp, 130 color illustrations
Hardback
$39.95 US
Available now through Phaidon or Amazon.

*Images and recipes courtesy of Phaidon, www.phaidon.com. All food photography © Andy Sewell / All other photographs © Joel Meyerowitz,

When approaching their designs for a new pot collection with traditional Austrian enamel company Riess Email, young Vienna-based design duo POLKA chose to reimagine the ways in which we interact with this common object. Asking questions like “How many handles does a pot need anyway?” and “What makes a functional object?” the pair created a new form of pot, one in which the idea of the pot is mutated and modified, rearranging our expectations for interactions with daily-used objects. The resulting collection of creatures entertain the user, allowing one to handle them as he or she sees fit, and encourages all of us to think about our daily routines and expectations.

Describing their playful approach to design, POLKA partners Marie Rahm and Monica Singer say:
“We like to observe, we like to surprise, we like to discover, we like to irritate, we like to find solutions, we like to tell stories, we like to entertain, we like to change the point of view . Above all, we like to create. And we like things.”

POLKA Pots are made on order.

POLKA product pleasure
Mariahilferstr. 9/7, 1060
Vienna, Austria
polkaproducts.com

* Photographs by Michael Stelzhammer. Images courtesy of POLKA.

One of the world’s most renowned architects, Zaha Hadid has been celebrated for a one-of-a-kind architectural language, based on fluid, organic shapes, always seemingly just beyond this world. For Summer 2010, she’s bringing her same creative language to a jewelry collection for Atelier Swarovski.

The Glace collection, as its called, consists of five pieces – bracelets, necklaces and rings – designed to be dramatically worn individually or as complementary pieces together. Each sculpted piece features colorful crystals suspended in clear resin, and every piece is available as one of only 50 in the exclusive collection.

According to Ms. Hadid:
“This enigmatic new Glace collection celebrates a powerful dichotomy between the purity of Swarovski’s precision cut crystals and the subtle, organic forms that envelop them. Each piece within the collection has evolved as an abstraction of the sinuous forms evident in nature, revealing my desire for experimentation and invention throughout every stage of design and realization.”

A selection from the new line is below; for more information, visit atelierswarovski.com.

*above: Zaha Hadid Pendant Jet

*above: Zaha Hadid Flame Cuffs

*above: Zaha Hadid Collar Opal

*above: Zaha Hadid Ring 1 +2 Crystal

*above: Zaha Hadid Jet Bangles

*All images courtesy of Atelier Swarovksi.

This summer, London’s Somerset House is proud to host Maison Martin Margiela ’20’ The Exhibition; a major exhibition celebrating 20 years of one of contemporary fashion’s most influential and enigmatic designers.

Young as its history is, no other fashion house has had quite the same impact on our understanding of fashion and its relationship to history, craft, commerce and innovation. 20 years on, Maison Martin Margiela’s radical questioning and rethinking of what fashion is, how we clothe the body and ideals of human beauty, is still as groundbreaking as ever. This multi-layered exhibition captures Margiela’s one-of-a-kind aesthetic and vision spanning the past two decades, by incorporating installations, photography, video and film.

The show provides an opportunity to learn more about the brand and its philosophy through a visual examination of themes that underpin the essence of the fashion house since its creation – from its deconstructivist, subversive design aesthetic and avant-garde couture to its understated branding, unusual boutique interiors and ‘trompe-l’oeil’ or optical illusion and its couture atelier white coats. Various iconic pieces from both the women and menswear collections will be on display, such as the highly replicated ‘Tabi’ boots, as well as specially recreated garments for the exhibition.

Conceived in close collaboration with Maison Martin Margiela and curated by the Mode Museum, Antwerp, the show makes its London debut where it will be specially reconfigured for the Embankment Galleries, following critical acclaim at the MoMu, Antwerp and Haus der Kunst, Munich last year.

A graduate of Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Martin Margiela formerly worked as design assistant to Jean Paul Gaultier before showing his first collection under his own label in 1988. Employing a ‘deconstructivist’ approach – monochromatic palette, outsized garments, non-traditional fabrics, the use of recycled materials and exposing the construction of his clothes – Margiela displayed a radically new visual language that diametrically opposed the power dressing of the 1980s. Often referred to as the seventh member of the “Antwerp Six,” Margiela early on decided to let his fashion speak for itself and remain anonymous. As a result, Margiela as a brand is driven by product and sheer invention rather than fad, hype and celebrity often linked to other fashion labels.

Visitor details below. And if you’d like an abbreviated walk-through of the exhibit, take a look at Somerset House’s video below!

MAISON MARTIN MARGIELA ‘20’ THE EXHIBITION
Now through September 5th
An exhibition at Somerset House, London:
Somerset House Embankment Galleries, Stand, London, WC2R 1LA
Open daily 10.00 to 18.00.
Tickets: Adult £6, Concessions £5, Under 12s Free
For further information, call 020 7845 4600

*Images courtesy of Somerset House.

NOW SHOWING: Andy Warhol: The Last Decade
by Matt Mulholland

It’s hard to believe that an artist as celebrated as Andy Warhol has not had a major show in New York in over twenty years. The Brooklyn Museum has put an end to that absurd drought and is currently hosting the first United States museum exhibition of Warhol’s late works. The exhibit is a massive two-floor survey, consisting of nearly fifty paintings created between 1977-87, Warhol’s last and perhaps most prolific decade. During this stretch, Warhol produced a substantial number of series and large scale works. His last decade was one of significant development and production, marked by a transformation of style and a drive to solidify his art world legacy.

In the late 1970s, Warhol began to move away from the Pop Art style of the 1960s. Drawing upon new techniques, Warhol produced provocative, abstract works such as the Oxidation series, in which he used urine and metallic pigment as components. He also explored the figurative in his collaborative works with friends and fellow art superstars Jean-Michel Basquiat, Francisco Clemente, and Keith Haring. Working alongside the 80s luminary Basquiat, Warhol returned to using brush and paint on canvas for the first time since the 1960s. Four of their collaborative works are on display here, highlighting Basquiat’s distinct style, while Warhol’s contribution acts more as a stamp of a approval, a passing of the torch on canvas.

The exhibit is a prodigious examination of an incredible end to a forty-year career. It showcases Warhol’s works that went beyond his iconic portraits of Marilyn Monroe and Campbell’s soup cans. The most outstanding pieces on display are the atypically large scale works. The Yarn series (a direct nod to the paintings of Jackson Pollock), enormous Rorschach paintings (towering over ten feet high), and his Double $5/Weightlifter are all dramatic works that must be seen in person. Also on display are several monumental examples from the Last Supper paintings, which injected Warhol’s pop flair into the iconic frescos of Leonardo da Vinci. The series is the largest Warhol produced in his entire career- a testament to his surprising devout Catholicism.

In addition to his works on canvas, the exhibit includes several of Warhol’s video pieces and rooms lined with portraits of celebrities like Debbie Harry, Mick Jagger, Truman Capote and Dolly Parton. There is also a wall of Interview magazine covers and a table showcasing a catalog of the magazine, which Warhol founded in 1969, and remained involved in until the end of his life.

Andy Warhol: The Last Decade will be at the Brooklyn Museum from now until September 12, 2010. Entry is $10, $6 for students and seniors. After the Brooklyn showing, it will move onto its last stop at the Baltimore Museum of Art, from October 17, 2010- January 9, 2011.

Brooklyn Museum
200 Eastern Parkway
Brooklyn, NY 11238-6099
(718) 638-5000

Story by Matt Mulholland, ArtSlope contributing writer & photographer.
*All photos by Matt Mulholland, courtesy of the artist.

Swiss-born, New York-based photographer Henry Leutwyler‘s new series, “Neverland Lost: A Portrait of Michael Jackson,” considers Jackson’s life through the artifacts he’s left behind: the iconic white glove, the black hat, the bejeweled jackets. Shot at Neverland Ranch in the year prior to Jackson’s death (when these items were intended for auction), this extensive series of archeological-style object portraits reveals a side of Jackson most were not privy to: the life of a man caught between his public persona as one of the greatest entertainers of all time and his sequestered, private life. Collectively, they also compose an adult Jackson’s self-constructed fantasy world, one which seemed in many ways an attempt to recreate a childhood he may never have really had.

Now, Leutwyler’s series has been published in gorgeous book form by Steidl, (available for purchase through Amazon), and an exhibit of the same name is open now through August 14th at M+B in Los Angeles. Below, check out photographs from the series, plus an interview with Leutwyler for Center Stage, Mark Gordon’s weekly radio show.

According to the ever-eloquent Leutwyler: “This collection of photographs was never intended to be a book. In February of 2009, I flew to California on a magazine assignment to photograph the iconic white glove of pop star Michael Jackson. Even though I am a lifelong portrait photographer, I have always had the urge to investigate people through the simplicity of the artifacts that make up their lives. I went to Los Angeles with one vision in mind and little more than a day to capture it. Michael Jackson’s primary home at Neverland had been vacant for several years and his belongings lay packed and stored in crates, awaiting public auction. When I arrived at the venue for the shoot, I had no idea what I’d find. What I discovered in those crates evoked in me a deep sadness. From the man who would be king, his artefacts were of the simplest design. A sequinned tube sock. A child’s trinket. The famous glove – so revealing in its dime store simplicity, so mundane in its plainness. I completed the initial assignment in two days, yet found myself unable to leave. My assistants and I remained on location for another twenty-four hours, poring over more than a thousand items from which we had to choose our images. I returned to New York after three days, with a premonition that the task wasn’t finished.”

He goes on: “It seems that an individual’s belongings rarely become available without some tragedy as a backdrop. Despite my exhaustive efforts to create a window into Jackson’s private world, the portrait was not complete. I knew there were other objects that had not been made available to be photographed. In April of 2009, I flew back to California. Through perseverance and good fortune, we were granted one last access. This time, when I returned to New York, I had the pieces I needed to complete the story. Shortly thereafter, our investigation became a documentation of a life cut short. It is said that the Pharaohs built tombs to reveal their lives to future generations. Michael Jackson sacrificed his childhood to the calling of his musical gift. Neverland was the pyramid he constructed to a lost childhood. The artifacts captured in this book return us to the Neverland he lost.”

Henry Leutwyler’s work has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, Vogue, Esquire and Vanity Fair. In 2008, Leutwyler was the recipient of the ASME Magazine Cover of the Year award and recognized as the Graphis Photographer of the Year. His work has also received acclaim from the Art Directors Club of New York, The Society of Publication Designers, Photo District News, D&AD, American Photography and the James Beard Foundation. For more information on Henry Leutwyler – and to see more of his stunning work – visit henryleutwyler.com.

*All images courtesy of Henry Leutwyler.

Renato D’Agostin‘s photographs are deeply rooted in the classic elements that make up his medium. Light and shadow are fused by extreme angles and the compression of space and timelessness. The young Italian photographer’s images are painterly abstracts, sketches of a place that are sometimes unrecognizable, recontexturealized as shape, form and an interaction, a push and pull between negative and positive spaces. Quite often, D’Agostin’s contemporary images can even call to mind the fluidity and cinematic style of William Klein’s iconic 1950′s homage to Rome. See below for two of D’Agostin’s city tributes: “Metropolis” and “Tokyo Untitled.”

D’Agostin is represented by the Randall Scott Gallery in Brooklyn, NY.

Tokyo Untitled…

*above: Tokyo Untitled no. 8, 2008; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 10; 30×40″ edition of 5

*above: Tokyo Untitled no. 2, 2008; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 10; 30×40″ edition of 5

above: Tokyo Untitled no. 14, 2008; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 10; 30×40″ edition of 5

*above: Tokyo Untitled no. 15, 2008; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 10; 30×40″ edition of 5

*above: Tokyo Untitled no. 16, 2008; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 10; 30×40″ edition of 5

Metropolis…

*above: Metropolis no. 5, 2007; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 25; 30×40″ edition of 5

*above: Metropolis no. 14, 2007; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 25; 30×40″ edition of 5

*above: Metropolis no. 15, 2007; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 25; 30×40″ edition of 5

*above: Metropolis no. 8, 2007; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 25; 30×40″ edition of 5

*above: Metropolis no. 9, 2007; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 25; 30×40″ edition of 5

*above: Metropolis no. 11, 2007; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 25; 30×40″ edition of 5

*above: Metropolis no. 18, 2007; Silver Gelatin Print; 12×16″ edition of 25; 16×20″ edition of 25; 30×40″ edition of 5

YouTube Play. A Biennial of Creative Video

The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and YouTube have announced the launch of YouTube Play: A Biennial of Creative Video. A collaboration with HP, YouTube Play was conceived to discover and showcase the most exceptional talent working in the ever-expanding realm of online video. Open to the global online community, the competition is accepting submissions now through July 31st.

A jury of experts from the worlds of art, design, film, and entertainment will select up to 20 videos submitted from around the world to be presented at the Guggenheim Museum on October 21, 2010, with simultaneous presentations at the Guggenheim museums in Berlin, Bilbao, and Venice. The works will also be available to a worldwide audience on the special YouTube Play channel at youtube.com/play.

YouTube Play is just the latest in YouTube’s run of innovative events. In 2009, the YouTube Symphony Orchestra gave everyone with access to the Internet a chance to play in Carnegie Hall, and in 2007, the CNN/YouTube debates gave everyone a chance to ask a question of U.S. presidential candidates. With YouTube Play, YouTube expands upon the traditional curatorial process in a way that gives every video creator a shot at international artistic recognition.

Upload Creative Video
The goal of this project is to discover and celebrate work that expands the notion of what video can be. Submissions may include any form of creative video, including art, animation, motion graphics, narrative and non-narrative work, or entirely new art forms. YouTube Play hopes to attract innovative, original, and surprising videos from around the world, regardless of genre, technique, background, or budget. Participants can be art students or amateur video makers as well as creative professionals. To help video creators generate the best possible submissions, the YouTube Play channel will post HP Make tutorials, featuring editing, sound, and other video-making techniques.

How to Participate
Participants are invited to submit new or existing videos created within the last two years to a YouTube Play channel at youtube.com/play. The maximum running time for a video is ten minutes. Each participant will be asked to provide a written statement regarding his or her work. Only one video per participant will be considered. The deadline for submission is July 31, 2010, 12:00 p.m., Pacific Time, 3:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time.

Selection Process
The Guggenheim will identify up to 200 videos which will be viewable on the YouTube Play channel at youtube.com/play. From the 200, up to 20 videos will be selected by a jury of experts, comprised of distinguished artists, filmmakers, designers, and musicians, to be presented at the Guggenheim Museum in New York during a special event on October 21, 2010.

Check out the video below for more details, and/or visit YouTube.com/Play.

*above: Design by Jeff Baxter adapted from a photograph by David Heald; © Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York, 2010

*above: Design by Jeff Baxter; Courtesy of Google

*Images courtesy of The Guggenheim.