wish list: books

Last night I did a little updating on my Amazon wish list. So happy to hear that Stephan Sagmeister has a new book coming out soon. I really loved his last one, "Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far."

When I was a little girl I LOVED Ed Emberley's books. I remember I had one where I learned how to make little characters out of thumb prints. Drove my mom crazy because my hands were black from an ink pad for months! I just added this one to my wish list. I think it would be super fun activity to do with my five-year-old.

nostalgic for: charley harper

charley harper books, available at SoLo

Most of my elementary school days were spent in Cincinnati, Ohio. I remember going to the zoo and asking the ticket lady for extra stickers ... they were designed by Charley Harper; my mom and I had a whole stash of them. Since then I've moved at least a dozen times, and unfortunately the stickers are lost. But I'd love one of these books (available at SoLo) to fill the void! I love how Mr. Harper was able to convey a peaceful quiet with just a few strokes. Lovely.

ceci n'est pas ...

"i am not a paper cup," available at a+r

magritte

I'd like to fill a "this is not a coffee cup" with a "this is not a bloody mary" and go for a surreal walk on the beach this morning (instead of working).

van gogh & the colors of the night

the sower, by van gogh (now on exhibit at moma)

I had the great pleasure over the weekend to visit MOMA in NYC and was lucky to snag a ticket to see the Van Gogh exhibit: Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night. I had seen some of the paintings (from the MOMA's permanent collection and at Musée D'Orsay in Paris) but never before had I seen so many Van Gogh works in one place. Walking through the exhibit felt like walking through one of his paintings--it seemed like all the walls were painted colors taken directly from Van Gogh's color palette.

What I found most remarkable was that all day I had been walking around the museum and had been confronted with sadness, loneliness and pain. So many pieces at MOMA are depressing! (Or maybe that's just me projecting???). BUT, I found Van Gogh's paintings quite the opposite. Here's a man who is known to have had serious psychological problems (he did cut off his own ear and all), and most of his paintings depict evening/night scenes, yet I found his paintings to be the most joyful in the entire museum: a celebration of life.

I highly recommend visiting MOMA's online exhibit (and of course the real one if you're in NYC)--the audio clips are great.

The painting shown above, "The Sower," is much (much!) brighter in real life. The setting sun is super bright lemon yellow and the green sky seems electrified. Loved it!

cool weirdness: duck mirror

"duck" mirror by David Dear

Imagine checking your makeup in this "duck" mirror by David Dear. Suddenly, the wrinkles (or "cracks in your eyes," as our 4-year-old calls them) wouldn't seem so serious. The mirror is available at risdworks.com, where all products are designed by Rhode Island School of Design grads and all profits are returned to RISD.

sophie matthews textiles

sophie matthews textiles from trowbridgegallery

These lovely embroideries from Trowbridge Gallery stopped me in my tracks at the Atlanta Gift Mart. Gorgeous!

art friday: cuca

art: katherine brannock

Just added to the delphine website: Original artwork by Katherine Brannock. It's difficult to see in the photo, but the background of these images is hand scored with a bone, creating a gorgeous ripple effect around the image. This piece is called "Beyond the Peak of Mourning 2."

art friday

photo: SoLo

Original art (collage on wood) by Lorena Siminovich. Available at SoLo.

deep in the green

art: alena hennessy

"Deep in the Green Lilac Park," by Alena Hennessy. J & I met Alena last summer at the Atlanta Gift Mart, where we were both exhibiting. It was like a refreshing cool breeze to walk into her gorgeous, peaceful booth. We won't be exhibiting this year, but will be walking the show as buyers for some friends, and one of our first stops will be to visit Alena!

sweet floral wall mural

photos: delphine

When J and I were in LA last week we came upon this sweet & simple floral wall mural. It's so lovely to see public art like this, and refreshing that it was left alone (no graffiti in sight!). The illustrations inspired me to pick up my dusty sketchbook. I love that the painting is inspired by real flowers, but doesn't look like a horticultural specimen.