Montag, 24. Juni 2013

Eijiro Miyama

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eijiro Miyama (1934-)

Updated 13 hours ago
Eijiro Miyama was born in Mie Prefecture, Japan. A loner, he never married and has always led a wandering sort of existence. He has had various jobs, notably as a day labourer in the construction industry and as a lorry driver. When he was around fifty-five, he settled in one of the boarding houses for impoverished working men in Yokohama’s Kotobuki district, where the unemployed and the socially excluded, homeless, tend to congregate. Today he divides his time between free karaoke and his parades in town: every Saturday and Sunday, Eijiro Miyama goes to the Chinese district in Yokohama, a very lively place. There he meanders through the crowd on his bike, decked out in his brightly coloured hats and clothing, with messages of peace and fraternity written on cardboard packaging attached to his back. One day, about ten years ago, Eijiro Miyama walked around with a cup of instant noodles on his head. People turned to stare as he went by. This act, provocative and liberating, gave him a huge feeling of exaltation. He gradually created eccentric headgear that he adorned with toys and sundry objects found discarded at flea markets. But this creator also applies his ingenuity to the clothes bought at jumble sales that he dons for his weekly appearances, turning his body into a support for expression.

More info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eijiro_Miyama
http://www.rawvision.com/articles/eijiro-miyamas-bicycle-parades
http://www.spiritartmuseum.jp/en/permanent-collection.php?artist=018

Montag, 10. Juni 2013

Anthony Stevens






































An introduction to the work of Anthony Stevens, an new associate artist at Raw Art Foundation.
 
Anthony Stevens - Artists Statement:
I am a U.K based, self taught Artist. I use my work as a form of therapy and self expression. When not producing art, I also work as a Peer Support Specialist and engage in Buddhist culture and peace activities.

Primarily, my work is about expressing and  processing trauma and it's after effects. I guess it's me dancing with my inner dynamics so that I can find a rhythm that is both constructive and wonderful.


My work is heavily influenced by my practise of Nichiren Buddhism and chanting 'Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo', especially the concept of 'Nothing is wasted'. This has become manifest by my choosing to work primarily with scrap fabrics. By choosing to do this, I am forced to look creatively and perceive potential in what may seem to be useless and beyond repair. This is in direct correlation with how I strive to perceive my life and my experiences.


Like my art, it is sometimes a painstaking and frustrating process, but ultimately I feel joy and satisfaction with the result.
An introduction to the work of Anthony Stevens, an new associate artist at Raw Art Foundation.

R*A*F is an Independent Arts studio/forum for untrained,
autodidactic artists, supporting collaborative creative processes.
R*A*F is based in Frankfurt am Main. http://www.rawartfoundation.de/

Mittwoch, 5. Juni 2013

Toot @ Poste restante 2013

http://tootasinfoot.blogspot.de/2013/06/poste-restante.html
Thank you to Joanna, at Toot as in foot, it´ll take pride of place in Cuges!


Poste restante

I am contributing this large table cloth that I made to the Poste Restante project at Nomadic Village 2013. The brief was to make a piece based around nomads and the nomadic lifestyle.
jo waterhouse tablecloth photo P6022175_zps6e5205a3.jpg
standing on the sofa
The print is of a pair of cotton trousers, that I got at a car boot (naturally). They reminded me of clothes I bought when I travelled to live in Africa: they are cotton (cool for hot countries) but look awful on me. Before I went I bought clothes like that because I felt I wouldn't care what I looked like when I got there. I was ready to go to this hot place where everything was different. And when I got there a lot of things were quite the same . . . including me feeling like a proper nob in all my big cotton clothes. So I guess I chose the trousers because I'm not a nomad: I'm a rubbish traveller, I easily feel out of my depth and constantly misjudge things - especially when I travel alone.
 photo P6022178_zpsad669a5a.jpg
Doing something that isn't just holding it up.
So I chose to make a table cloth because I imagined the routine of dining as a bit of a balm to my fears of travelling. I imagined spreading the table cloth as a routine you could take from place to place, for making things familiar and easy. You could spread it on the ground, on a bench or a tree stump and host people for food.
 photo photo1_zps2a4ba58e.jpg
The trousers with the splendid gusset.
I'm pleased with the print because it is liney and wonky and blotchy but the overall pattern is bold.
 photo P6022182_zps5eb2e8d9.jpg
A portrait of Jack taken through the cloth.
And now I will send it off in the post and it will never come back. Sigh. If you fancy going to Nomadic Village maybe you could spill some wine on it from me.

Dienstag, 4. Juni 2013

Poste Restante 2013





Poste Restante - Cuges 2013
International Mail Art Open Call *

Deadline Mid September 2013

All Post to:
C/O tadlachance
Nomadic village 2013
Project: Poste Restante - Cuges
6 traverse Condorcet
13780 Cuges Les Pins
France

Mittwoch, 15. Mai 2013

Crowning glory - Hair designs


 

















































 Series of hair style photographs from Nigeria circa 1970's photographed by the legendary typologist J.D. ‘Okhai Okeikere.

J.D. ‘Okhai Okeikere, Untitled, 1970s. Courtesy of the Walther Collection.

As featured in the interview with seminal African photography collector, Artur Walther on Another Africa by contributor Stephanie Baptist

http://www.anotherafrica.net/art-culture/the-walther-collection

Sonntag, 28. April 2013