Tag: <span>art</span>

I’ve never purchased art for the matting, until now. Set a quarter-inch deep with a massive white border, the matting makes this tiny picture seem so grand. Prints rarely even come this small (or warrant such a big frame) but if you look into the collectible world of early 20th-century cigarette trading cards, you’ll find more. Scenes of beautiful women, baseball players, cinema stars, and other popular imagery used to be printed on stiff pieces of paper and slipped into cigarette packs to keep the fags from bending and add a little Cracker-Jack surprise to the smoking experience.
Art idea--cigarette-cards from japanThough I would have probably purchased this frame even if I didn’t adore the card inside, the 1940s subject matter was a definite selling point. A Japanese woman lounging nude in a living room, with jelly rolls proudly exposed, sitting on a side table admiring her red high heels—what’s not to love? Plus, the Marimekko-like blue floral carpet is pretty spectacular. The simple pen drawing is wonderfully graphic and the scene a bit mysterious.

I found this piece of art at this adorable boutique called Bucks County Dry Goods in Lambertsville, NJ but you can be sure to find antique cigarette trading cards on eBay, as well.

Finds

Framing ideas for RecordsWithout decorating our apartment with Statue of Liberty figurines and Sopranos posters, we wanted to give our Hoboken apartment a sense of place. To do this, there is no man better than Frank Sinatra. Ol’ Blue Eyes was born in Hoboken on December 12, 1915 and the town has been touting him ever since.

Contributing to the Sinatra craze wasn’t necessarily our planned homage but the previous owner of these records convinced us it was the thing to do.

We stopped at this stranger’s garage sale in upstate New York, got chatting, and when we told him we were from Hoboken, he insisted we take his album collection. Though I wasn’t particularly interested in the records (our player is broken and we have Sinatra on CD), his enthusiasm got me thinking about the covers. In simple silver frames, they would make a kitschy-cool collection for our kitchen.

We picked the range of Frank to display: Hollywood Starlet, Rat Pack, and the Chairman of the Board.

framing-ideas-records-hatI took out the records, cut off the back sleeves, and put them in square Ikea frames with wide matting.

With three Sinatra’s greeting me every time I walk walk into my kitchen, I’ve found my sense of place.

Projects

design-ideas-artists-tour.I’m a big museum fan but if given the choice to see the art in the climate-controlled rooms of the Met or the studio where art is being made, I’ll choose the latter. That said, the Jersey City Artist Studio Tour might have been my dream exhibition. In its 19th year, the two-day festival doesn’t block off streets or close wings of museums to display the works of the 600 participating artists; it opens the doors to all the places creative works are made or supported.

design-trends-artists-tour-signA whole town effort, each neighborhood’s coffee shops, restaurants, hair salons, churches, bars, hotels, community centers and condo lobbies offered up their walls to support their local artists. Here, the Stockinette Knitting Cafe makes this gesture with a handwritten window ad.

design-trends-artists-tour-cafe.jpgThe Stockingette awarded artist Matthew Caputo a solo exhibit. His quirky and intriguing oil paintings line the walls of the narrow space.

design-trends-artists-tourAs far as public spaces go, the Balance salon may have been my favorite on the tour. For a hair salon with a specialty in Mohawks, it was hard to tell if the art made the exposed brick-space edgier or more sophisticated.

design-trends-IMG-3891Bunches of colored balloons tied to a facade signaled the presence of art and cheese. All participating artists provided wine and hors d’ oeuvres for anyone that came through their spaces. Photographer Beth Achenbach uses her garage as her workspace and two-car gallery.

design-trends-bedroom.jpg

You would think these artists would be a bit jittery having thousands of strangers traipse through their homes–not this group. The dozens of artists I visited couldn’t have been more inviting–painter and leather maker Kirk Bray, included. Here, Bray’s art is displayed above his lofted bed for all to gawk and enjoy.

design-trends-IMG-3859.jpgBeyond each artist’s prized pieces, I loved seeing their half-finished works and the tools the artists use to complete them.

design-trends-IMG-3923Perhaps the most amazing part of the entire show was the pricing! Jen Bernstein was selling her sketches on vellum for under $10 with the frame. I adore the sense of movement between the overlapping figures and the urban vibe they have as a series. The middle print is conveniently covering an ancient and massive phone jack in our kitchen.

design-ideas-artArtist Loren Abbate used the show as opportunity to have a moving sale. I couldn’t resist the sunset colors, the Van Gogh texture, and the $25 price tag on this painting so I bought it on the spot. I’ve been looking for some art to shake up my living room design, and this might be just the spice it needs.

You may have missed this show, but amazing enough, this weekend is your closest thing to a second chance. Considered to be the largest design and architecture event in America, Open House New York takes place across hundreds of private and public spaces throughout the five boroughs this October 10-11th. Truly an amazing way to experience new neighborhoods, meet all sorts of people, and discover new artists and art forms; this event is a must-see if you are in the New York area. I’ll sadly be away in Pittsburgh for a wedding this weekend so I hope you can go and post comments all about it!

Places