Surrealist Artist Vladimir Kush

A very happy Monday to you all! After several days of a much needed torrential downpour, Austin has once again warmed up to the gorgeous, sunny 70′s! (Right in time for the South by Southwest festival!). For those of you in the Austin area, I hope you are able to take a little time out of your day to enjoy the sunshine!

Today I’d like to introduce you to one of my favorite artists–Vladimir Kush. Although he’s not an “environmental artist,” much of his work is very much inspired by the natural environment.

Kush was born in Russia, near Sokolniki–a forested park in Moscow. He began to attend art school when he was seven years old and ten years later studied at the Moscow Higher Art and Craft School. A year later he was sent to military training. There, the unit commander decided to use Vladimir’s artistic abilities, asking that he paint propaganda posters. After his military service and graduation from the Institute of Fine Arts, Kush began painting portraits on the street to support his family. His works continued to gain popularity, so much so that his works began to be exhibited around the world (which led him to Los Angeles. Once in California, he began to earn money by drawing portraits on the Santa Monica Pier. Eventually, he was able to save up enough money to buy a plane ticket to Hawaii–which is where he now lives and continues to work as an artist.

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to visit his gallery while in Maui. It was one of those incredible, inspirational art experiences that will remain with me.

To read more about Vladimir Kush’s life and works, check out his website.

Here are a few of my favorite Kush paintings:

‘Til later..happy explorations!

Galveston Tree Sculptures!

Apologies for the lack of posting over the last week or so! Although it would appear as though it were due to exhaustion from my nature photography challenge (no way!), I actually headed to the coastal city of Galveston, Texas, where I not only got to attend the Texas Art Education Association’s annual conference, celebrating its 50 year existence, but I also had the chance to explore the town and do a little bit of hiking at Galveston Island State Park. For the next week or so, I’ll probably post little gems that I ran across during this adventure. For tonight, however, I’d like to tell you a little about the Galveston Tree Sculptures that I was able to check out while I was there. After Hurricane Ike hit in 2008, uprooting thousands of trees and destroying much of the city, three local artists decided to breath a second life into some of the destruction. Since the project began, months after the disaster, many locals from the area have carved their own tree trunks, or prepared the remains of their trees for an artist to carve. While the artists often get their inspiration from the shape of the tree itself, they often collaborate with families on the design of the tree. Below are a few pictures I took from inside the bus (apologies for the poor quality!). If you’d like to see some better shots of the sculptures and read more about the project, click here.  Such a cool example of artists at work in the community!

Enjoy checking out the tree sculptures!

Have a wonderful Sunday evening!

Artist/Naturalist Andy Goldsworthy

It seems like any time an art teacher wants to introduce environmental art into their curriculum, they inevitably bring Andy Goldsworthy into their lessons. Although I really WANT to dislike the work of Artist/Naturalist Andy Goldsworthy, due to the fact that he seems to be frequently thought of as THE FACE of environmental art, I must confess, his work is absolutely fantastic!

Every time I look at one of his ephemeral works, I am in awe at the power and beauty of nature! In truth, he is an incredible model for environmental art. In his own words:

“Movement, change, light, growth and decay are the lifeblood of nature, the energies that I try to tap through my work. I need the shock of touch, the resistance of place, materials and weather, the earth as my source. Nature is in a state of change and that change is the key to understanding. I want my art to be sensitive and alert to changes in materials, season and weather. Each work grows, stays, decays. Process and decay are implicit. Transience in my work reflects what I find in nature.”

Check out this website to view more of Andy Goldsworthy’s works and to read more of his reflections on his art and creative processes!