Ted Lott - Wood Sculptor, Artist & Designer

Ted Lott
Wood Sculptor, artist and designer
tedlott.com

        Ted Lott is a wood sculptor, but his craft is more than just your average wood shop creations.  Ted 's work encompasses sculpture, architecture, furniture and design all in every piece.  Ted makes little dwellings out of small pieces of wood that have been meticulously fitted and shaped, sometimes to stand on their own, other times fitted in preexisting furniture like chairs and end tables.  From the images, you can really see the intricacy and detail to making each piece fit together perfectly.
        Ted Lott got his B.F.A at Maine College of Art in woodworking and furniture design.  He later went on to get his M.F.A at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  As well as being a world traveler, his work has been featured in museums, exhibitions and galleries around the states.  He has a great little website with more information and pictures, but before you head over there, here are a few of my favorites.

This is a wood sculpture made from circular wooden rings grouped together to form a Cloud, for which it's named. 

This is a time lapse of the building process for one of Ted Lott's miniature wooden mansions.

Eiko Ojala - Graphic Desinger & Illustrator

Eiko Ojala
Graphic Designer & Illustrator
ploom.tv

        Eiko Ojala is an illustrator, graphic designer and art director.  Even though the work I have shown here, he refers to as illustration, I feel like its more like paper engineering.  Eiko uses different kinds of papers and through a technique of layering them he creates real life images.  Since each layer is not always perfectly flat, it creates shadows and depth, bringing the 2D pieces to life.  The X-Acto blade must be Eiko's best friend.
        Eiko has a great portfolio site, his bio is short, but his work speaks for itself.  Be sure to check it out, but in the mean time, here are some of my favorites.

 

 

 

 

Yuki Matsueda - 3D Design

Yuki Matsueda
3D Design
Yuki-Matsueda.com

        Yuki Matsueda is a Japanese artist who graduated with a Ph.D. in Design from the Tokyo University of the Arts.  Most of Yuki's work seems to take movement as inspiration.  He creates 3D pieces with common household items and everyday objects we may take for granted, and then these items are encapsulated in what looks like stretched glass.  I love how the projecting item stretches the clear substance, frozen in time as if it is trying to escape.  Yuki's website has many more examples of his work, but I have listed my favorites below.  Enjoy.

James Turrell - Installation Artist

James Turrell
Installation Artist

Biography: rodencrater.com

          Light is such an interesting element when it comes to art and deign.  Things look differently in different lighting, colors change, contrast becomes more or less apparent and shapes can seem to merge together or pull apart.  Most artists have to think about how their work is going to be displayed, and lighting can be just as important as the sequence or positioning.

          

         James Turrell designs light.  He creates these installations to conjure up feelings and project them   without actually saying anything, allowing the viewer to take it in with their own interpretations. Turrell creates his work to "impact the eye, body, and mind to heighten awareness."  When speaking of his work, Turrell said "I want to create an atmosphere that can be consciously plumed with seeing, like the wordless thought that comes from looking in a fire."

         From these photographs, James Turrell's work looks amazing.  But I bet these exhibits are even more stunning in person.  It feels like these bright, saturated colors are shining energy outwards.  The contrast between the sharp, defined and smooth, feathered outlines of the lights create tricks of the eye.  It feels like our sense of depth and space gets warped and changes between each piece.  I also can't argue with the clean lines and simple geometry that Turrell uses in one way or another in every piece.

        I would direct you to James Turrell's website, but from my research it does not look like he has a dedicated portfolio site.  There is a brief biography and slide show of some of his work on a site dedicated to a specific project called Roden Crater.  Check it out for more information.  In the mean time, here are a few more of my favorites.

Sandra Fettingis - Artist

Sandra Fettingis
Artist
sfettingis.com

          Apparently I love geometry because I keep stumbling upon these great geometric pieces.  It's not really the mathematical part of geometry that intrigues me but more of the artistic, precise shapes aspect.  I am drawn to the interactions of the sharp sides of these triangles in Sandra Fettingis' collection entitled "Tell Me When You Hear Me Falling."  I find it entrancing how together these smaller shapes make up larger ones and how the combination of the solid and outlined pieces work together.  I also really enjoy the contrast and bright pops of color even if it's only black and white.

          Sandra Fettingis is an artist working in Denver, Colorado who appreciates geometry as much as I do.  She creates these 3D pieces of art cut from pieces of wood and styrene plastic which are then coated in bright paints.  Her work has been featured in many museums, exhibits and public commissions.  She is also selling her geometric art (3D pieces like the ones featured here, jewelry and prints) online at her website and through etsy.   Most of her previous work can be found on her online portfolio.

Energy Drink Designs

emergency - Zakhar Krylov

        While I don't normally drink energy drinks myself, there is something to be said about their packaging and bottle design.  There are a lot of different kinds of energy drinks out in the market, each one trying to increase their market share by out performing their competitors.  However, it's not only the formula of the drink that sells them.  Packaging and design can be a big influence on undecided customers.  Each of the energy drink bottles has its own design and style, but they usually share common themes like large, eye catching text and flashy, bright colors.  Taking inspiration from an article on Cruzine and Neat Designs, I have collected some of my favorite examples of energy drink bottle designs.

DRIVE - Alex Matveev

ED Energy Drink - Kamil Laszuk

missile - Robinsson Cravents

Mood NYE 2011 - Fabio Seva

Power Pill - Ignas Kozlovas

SOBRO - Nick Edmonds

rpm - Juan Pablo Vildosola

VOLT - Melissa Suarez

RIVET - Stephen Bamford

ROCK - Hiten Sondagar

Dark Dog - Mathieu Schatz