Book Review: Visual Mantras by Ana Montiel

I’ve long been a fan of Ana Montiel’s amazing artwork and her keen eye for color, texture and pattern. Her style is unique, engaging and elegant and it’s exciting to share a tangible takeaway with all of you.

http://vimeo.com/15398238

The Visual Mantras Project is a work in progress in which Ana focuses on cycles and repetition. In her repetitive compositions, she meditatively studies the cycles in life, in nature, in relations, in everything and everywhere. The book is a limited edition, with each containing a surprise watercolor drawing enclosed as a bonus. Snap one up for yourself or someone in your life – it’s sure to be a treasured piece.

I’ll leave you with an adorable photo I snapped of Ana while I was last in London. She’s a true talent to the core and as lovely as you can imagine.

December 1, 2011 | By: Shayna Kulik

Carrie Ruby

A true a graphic jack of all trades, native Houstonian and current Manhattanite Carrie Ruby has been a part of the creative team at Future Brand, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, The Brand Union and MBLM. For anyone who’s familiar with the world of branding, they’ll understand that a brand must represent quality, consistency and a good degree of uniqueness. All of these qualities are evident in Ruby’s pattern work. Be it sharp vector repeats or organic negative space, each and every layout is distinctively fresh. Check out our Q+A for a glimpse into Ruby’s daily routine!

November 22, 2011 | By: Shayna Kulik

Flavio Melchiorre

“All that I see stays in my mind waiting to be unearthed during the creative process,” explains Italian artist, Flavio Melchiorre. When you get lost in Melchiorre’s mesmerizing patterns you certainly see what he means. His colorful designs draw from all elements of everyday life, particularly street art. Seeing his bold designs, you can easily imagine him walking by a splash of graffiti and filing it in his mind for years before it manifests into works such as Tips’ n Trips, Wild Things, or his recent iPhone skin for Grove. Check out our Q&A with this colorful Italian.

November 16, 2011 | By: Shayna Kulik

Book Review: Digital Textile Design

Digital Textile Design is a practical and inspiring book written for fabric designers and those looking to learn more about the burgeoning world of digital printing. Filled with more than 300 photographs and screen-grabs, this book offers 23 tutorials presented in an easy to follow, step-by-step format that guides the reader through the process of creating designs suitable for traditional and digital textile production.

Against the backdrop of the development of digital print, the book discusses how designers can access this new technique, looks at the work of those currently exploring it’s possibilities and has profiles of designers currently excelling in this form of design.

The book also features the growing movement of combining digital textile design skills with those of surface design to bring hand-rendered touches that offset the apparent flatness of print. Digital Textile Design is an excellent resource for anyone looking for the skills to translate their ideas into digital textile art.

September 30, 2011 | By: Shayna Kulik

Louise Bourgeois: The Fabric Works

Louise Bourgeois has been creating art since the 1930’s, but it was primarily in the 1990’s and beyond when she started incorporating the clothing of her loved ones into her sculptures and drawings. Her uniquely visual approach to fabric transforms decorative accessories into emotional and personal references, creating representations of womanhood.

In 2002, she began exploring the iridescent colors and formal structural properties of her own clothing, which resulted in “The Fabric Drawings.” These pieces are astonishing works alternating between floral figurative pieces and chromatic abstractions. Louise Bourgeois: The Fabric Works reflects the work from her solo show and goes beyond with its immersive collection of 300 sculptures, assemblages, and collages.

Fabric drawings via A Controlled Substance

September 22, 2011 | By: Shayna Kulik

Book Review: Design*Sponge at Home

The much anticipated Design*Sponge at Home by Grace Bonney is finally out and we couldn’t be more thrilled! The large and luscious book is a testament to all of the things that have made the blog the institution that it has become since it’s 2004 launch. Bursting at the seams, the book contains fifty exciting do-it-yourself projects; home tours of 70 interiors featuring artists and designers; step-by-step tutorials on home improvement skills; fifty before-and-after makeover submitted by readers; essential tips on flower arranging; and, not least, 700 photographs to boggle your design hungry mind.

We love the content and spirit of the site and its namesake book for making home design exciting, interesting and most of all accessible to all, which is, in our opinion, just as it should be. It’s not every day that a blog translates into a book as well as Design*Sponge at Home, so watch the trailer, pick one up to get inspired offline today. For more images, click here.

September 15, 2011 | By: Shayna Kulik