Weird, But Cool

Liz McGrath is an incredibly talented artist, but you have to admit, she's a little touched in the head. Can one find beauty in what it is bizarre and grotesque? Sure they can. However, crazy shit is crazy shit, and this art takes the cake. I like it, and yet, it leaves me scratching my head saying, "What the F am I looking at right now?" You have to wonder how she comes up with the ideas she does. Her pieces are slightly nightmarish. Do you think people come over to her house and are immediately freaked out by the batshit crazy menagerie of sculptures? Or are they probably just used to wacky Elizabeth and her "unique" artwork?

(Via Boing Boing via Elizabeth McGrath)

Surrealism Meets the Erotic: Anthony Ventura

As I was perusing my favorite blogs the other day, I came across an amazing artist on Susannah Breslin’s intelligent and sexy blog, The Reverse Cowgirl. His name is Anthony Ventura, and his mind-blowing prints are featured at a limited time through Sexy Art Gallery in London. They are simply amazing. He uses rich colors: blood reds, midnight blues, and cotton candy pinks to create moody, eye-catching pieces. Some are part of a fetish series, and these are erotic and provocative without being the slightest bit vulgar. His art is created through a variety of methods: painting, drawing, and computer. Ventura’s prints are Renaissance meets Alice in Wonderland. Each painting is a dream world, concocted of larger than life characters where surrealism and eroticism mesh. His females are tantalizing, stunning, albeit dangerous Botticelli-esque goddesses: their bodies are voluptuous; their facial features are exaggerated as if blow-up dolls; and their gangly, serpentine legs seem to be never-ending appendages. Ventura’s women are the queens who rule over his strange and fascinating psychedelic universe, and he is their god.

Why Mark Rothko Will Always Rock My World

I have been a huge Mark Rothko fan, since I took an Art History course in college. That's why I was so delighted to see one of his paintings (still trying to figure out which one) in Mr. Cooper's office on Mad Men. During this episode, Jane called the art "smudgy squares", but it's so much more than that. Rothko uses the juxtaposition of different colors to evoke an array of emotions and moods. As much as I love his brighter paintings, there's something so haunting and magnificent about his darker, moodier pieces. Some of you may just see blurry blocks of color, but from what I hear, the only way to appreciate one of these paintings is to see it in person. Somebody online described the colors "vibrating". If I were lucky enough to have any piece of artwork, it would be a Rothko. For some reason, his art moves me because I find it so breathtaking. I'm considering buying a print for my bedroom.

And, if anybody knows the name of the painting featured on Mad Men, please let me know.

Disney City

Some artist took the princesses from classic Disney movies and placed them in Sin City roles. It's a cool concept, and I love artists who think of different ways of making their art interesting and creative. (Via Copyranter)

Passion of the Frog

A crucified frog sculpture has been condemned by Pope Benedict XVI because he believes it is blasphemous. The sculpture shows a frog nailed to a cross, holding a beer in one hand and an egg in the other. They have moved the sculpture away from the entrance, but they do not want to remove it from the museum. "According to ANSA, the museum’s curators contend that the work is a self-portrait of the artist 'in a state of profound crisis' and is not an attack on religion." I can't believe this guy used a frog to depict hiimself. That's just weird. Some modern art I grasp, but art like this, goes right over my head. How do people not laugh when they see this thing?! I'm pretty sure J and I would be removed from the museum because we were rolling on the floor, holding our sides, roaring with laughter. (Via MSNBC)