David Hockney has given the largest painting he has ever made – a landscape 12 metres long by 5 metres tall (40ft by 15ft) – to the Tate.

The work, Bigger Trees near Warter (2007), is a monumental-scale view of a coppice in Hockney’s native Yorkshire, between Bridlington and York. It was painted on 50 individual canvases, mostly working in situ, over five weeks last winter.

Although Hockney settled in Los Angeles in 1978, he has always spent Christmas at his mother’s house in Bridlington. Four years ago, he began to work there seriously, splitting his time between Yorkshire and California, with the rolling chalk hills around Bridlington the focus of his art.

Trees especially have caught his attention. In 2006, he made a series of five oil paintings of Woldgate Woods, returning to the same spot between March and November to chart the drama of the changing of the seasons.

Each of those works was made up of six panels, and for Bigger Trees near Warter Hockney scaled up his efforts to produce a single complete work of 50 panels that fit together like a jigsaw.

He said that trees were “like faces – every one is different. Nature doesn’t repeat itself”. Winter trees were particularly difficult to capture, he said. “You have to observe carefully; there is a randomness.”

The clump of trees is dominated by a mighty sycamore that sits in the foreground of the picture, its curling branches spreading over 30 of Hockney’s canvases. “They were probably planted 150 years ago, and they left room for the trees to grow,” he said.

Hockney started Bigger Trees Near Warter on January 12, when he made initial paintings of the scene over six canvases, working in the open air.

On a trip to LA, looking at images of his Woldgate Woods paintings, he had the idea of working up the same scene over a much bigger scale, figuring out how he could do so without a ladder, and in a small house in Bridlington.

“The enormous 19th-century oil paintings like The Coronation of Napoleon in the Louvre were made in specially designed studios.” Hockney wanted to avoid working on a ladder or on scaffolding. “The trouble is that with something like this you need to step back. Artists have been killed stepping back from ladders.”

First, Hockney sketched a grid showing how the scene would fit together over 50 panels. Then he began to work on individual panels in situ. As he worked on them, they were photographed and made into a computer mosaic so that he could chart his progress, since he could have only six panels on the wall at any one time. Gradually, with the help of the constantly updated computer mosaic, Hockney built up the picture.

The work had to be created quickly, since not only did he have a deadline in the shape of the Royal Academy show, but he also needed to get it done before spring kicked in and the trees came into leaf. Finally, the artist rented a small warehouse where he was able to see the complete work for the first time.

The work can now be shown in its entirety in Tates Modern, Britain and Liverpool, though Tate director Sir Nicholas Serota doubted there was a wall large enough at Tate St Ives to take the whole work. But it can also be seen in halves or quarters. The complete work will go on display at Tate Britain next year.

Source: Charlotte Higgins, arts correspondent
Tuesday April 8, 2008
The Guardian 

During mid of April, Thailand always filled with joy as we celebrate our long awaited traditional New Year. Years after years, the celebration has interestingly become the extraordinary in t he ordinary.

13/14/15 is an exhibition which explores and unveils some captivating perspectives of the Songkran Festival through varied of art & design by 6 young local talents.
 

ArtGorillas ArtGallery
ArtGorillas ArtGallery is one of the most unique art space in Bangkok showcasing work by upcoming talents, both local and international, in modern and contemporary art scene.

All selected art work traverse all facets of contemporary art; be it painting, sculpture, photography, mixed media, etc. We aim to trigger local youngsters with more glimpse of art appreciation, young talents with more space to exhibit, and established names with alternative space and broader viewers.We are the art gallery in the heart of Bangkok, come by & check out some cool works shown here!

Gallery Hours: 
Mon.-Fri: 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. 
Sat. & Sun: 12 – 8 p.m. 
or by appointment.

Location:2nd Floor, Lido Multiplex Building,
Siam Square between Soi 2 and 3, Bangkok
Tel/Fax: +66 2 658 3975 
E-mail: artgorillas@gmail.com
http://www.myspace.com/artgorillas

Not satisfied with the new T-shirts on sale at the local mall? Maybe you’d like a wedding invitation that expresses your own vision, not your party planner’s? How about some personalized stationery? An upgrade to your website? A business card? A poster for your political campaign? A CD package for your band? Sound good? Then get up off your couch and Design It Yourself! Avoid graphic identity theft: build your own. Ellen Lupton, bestselling author of Thinking with Type will show you how.

DIY: Design It Yourself provides you with all the tools you’ll need to create your own projects, from conception through production. Here you will find:

- simple ideas on how you can “think like a designer”

- clear and coherent explanations of design technologies, from silk-screening to web   development

- what materials you’ll need to get your job done

- where to find and buy them

- how much time and experience your project demands

- diagrams that show how to handle complex tasks 

- basic typographic dos and don’ts 

- the history and theory of the DIY design movement

- hundreds of innovative and beautiful projects for inspiration

No more excuses. With this book, virtually any design task is within your grasp. Just do it (yourself)!

A lot has happened in the world of digital design since the first edition of this title was published, but one thing remains true: There is an ever-growing number of people attempting to design pages with no formal training. This book is the one place they can turn to find quick, non-intimidating, excellent design help from trusted design instructor Robin Williams. This revised classic–now in full color–includes a new section on the hot topic of Color itself. 

In The Non-Designer’s Design Book, 3rd Edition, Robin turns her attention to the basic principles that govern good design. Readers who follow her clearly explained concepts will produce more sophisticated and professional pages immediately. Humor-infused, jargon-free prose interspersed with design exercises, quizzes, and illustrations make learning a snap–which is just what audiences have come to expect from this best-selling author. 

This well-written book is concerned foremost with creating beautiful typography and is essential for professionals who regularly work with typographic designs. Author Robert Bringhurst writes about designing with the correct typeface; striving for rhythm, proportion, and harmony; choosing and combining type; designing pages; using section heads, subheads, footnotes, and tables; applying kerning and other type adjustments to improve legibility; and adding special characters, including punctuation and diacritical marks. The Elements of Typographic Style teaches the history of and the artistic and practical perspectives on a variety of type families that are available in Europe and America today.

 Table of Contents

Foreword 9

Historical Synopsis 12

1 Grand Design 17

2 Rhythm & Proportion 25

3 Harmony & Counterpoint 45

4 Structural Forms & Devices 61

5 Analphabetic Symbols 75

6 Choosing & Combining Type 93

7 Historical Interlude 119

8 Shaping the Page 143

9 The State of the Art 179

10 Prowling the Specimen Books 199

App. A Sorts & Characters 271

App. B: Glossary of Terms 287

App. C Type Designers 299

App. D Typefoundries 309

App. E: Recapitulation 319

App. F: Further Reading 327

Afterword to the Second Edition 333

Index 335 

Library Journal

 Thinking with Type, the organization of letters on a blank sheet — or screen — is the most basic challenge facing anyone who practices design. What type of font to use? How big? How should those letters, words, and paragraphs be aligned, spaced, ordered, shaped, and otherwise manipulated? In this groundbreaking new primer, leading design educator and historian Ellen Lupton provides clear and concise guidance for anyone learning or brushing up on their typographic skills. 

Thinking with Type is divided into three sections: letter, text, and grid. Each section begins with an easy-to-grasp essay that reviews historical, technological, and theoretical concepts, and is then followed by a set of practical exercises that bring the material covered to life. Sections conclude with examples of work by leading practitioners that demonstrate creative possibilities (along with some classic no-no’s to avoid).

Ellen Lupton is one of America’s preeminent design educators. Her books include Skin, Inside Design Now, and Mixing Messages, among others. She is currently director of the design program at Maryland Institute of Art and Design.

How Addicted to Apple Are You? 

Mine is 56%

  

“Design is not just what it looks like and feels like.                                     Design is how it works.” 

Steve Jobs