Works on (Toilet) Paper: The Irreverence of Maurizio Cattelan

Maurizio Cattelan may have, as he claims, retired from making art, but his cunning sense of the mischievous and macabre hasn't stopped haunting the public. Consider the new book Toilet Paper (Freedman/Damiani). a collection of surreal, unsettling images (like the one above) Cattelan and and photographer Pierpaolo Ferrari created for their two-year-old magazine of the same name. Paired with similarly peculiar texts (among them Jonathan Swift's devilish satire "A Modest Proposal," which suggested that the Irish should eat their homeless children), the volume reads as one long, extraordinarily vivid dream.

Maurizio Cattelan & Pierpaolo Ferrari, Toilet Paper Magazine, Bi-Annual Issues

fashion/art

The above painting of the Paul Smith store on Melrose Avenue was given to Paul Smith as a gift from John. Paul then created a limited edition women's silk scarf featuring a print of that painting, to be sold exclusively in the Melrose Avenue store.

Tierney’s paintings are rendered in a highly realistic style. He uses oil paint to enhance the luminosity of each picture and his compositions are distinguished by their vibrant colors, the interplay of light and shadow, and the juxtaposition of form and space.  According to Tierney, his primary influences are Edward Hopper and David Hockney.

Whereas in fashion the adjective “architectural” is an asset, a positive term that applies to a design with distinctively strong structure and form, the term “fashionable” in architecture is pejorative, suggesting a fleeting trend with no lasting worth. As trends typically come and go, only to return again, the fast wheel of fashion occasionally falls into alignment with the slow motion of architecture. This peculiar synchrony between “fashion time” and “architecture time” is both unsettling and liberating. - See more at: http://deste.gr/publication/the-look-diller-scofidio-renfro-with-matthew-monteith/#sthash.wsujmz7t.dpuf

The Lost Art of Jordan Betten

At the helm of bespoke leather atelier Lost Art, Jordan Betten transforms animal hide into meticulously embellished garments – or more accurately, wearable works of art — for a star-studded clientele including Lenny Kravitz and Erin Wasson.

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To no one’s surprise, Betten’s eclectic aesthetic lends itself as much to architecture as it does to the canvas. For an artist not usually associated with New York’s street art scene, Jordan Betten’s murals have a strong presence around Chelsea.  His signature black and white paintings are linear and energetic — mimicking the lyrical styles of graffiti. 

Jordan Betten, Highline Zoo, Chealsea NYC

The same artist behind the Highline Zoo —a rooftop installation of zoo animals cleverly visible to visitors on the elevated park— Betten continues to explore alternative ways of displaying his work within the public realm.  Taking advantage of the art community just at his doorstep, he allows neighborhood visitors to encounter his work without ever having to step foot within a gallery.

In 2005, he launched Betten Art, which was created to foster and promote his use of other artistic mediums.

Betten's work has been featured in major magazines including W, Vogue, Elle, and Rolling Stone, and his art has been exhibited in leading museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY; the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England; and the Museum of the City of New York.

Print editions Evolution and Embryonic, two affordable favorites from our own collection of his work, are available on now on Peach Editions!