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Art

10 Famous Artists’ Stunning Studios

By Claire Cottrell on

Leonardo da Vinci once said, “An artist’s studio should be a small space because small rooms discipline the mind and large ones distract it.” An interesting concept, but does it necessarily hold true centuries later? With that in mind, we thought we’d take a look at some of the most inspiring ateliers of some of the world’s most famous artists. From Picasso’s spacious studio on the French Riviera that was both his home and the hub of his social life to Georgia O’Keeffe’s beloved Ghost Ranch in New Mexico where she could work both inside and out, click through to check out some of the most spectacular creative spaces in the world. Let us know in the comments which you’d most love to work in! … Read More

Art

Fascinating Video Footage of Famous Artists at Work

By Marina Galperina on

Art in action! Sometimes, strolling through museums and galleries, one can disassociate the works from the artist, reducing them to pleasing pretty independent objects strung to walls, not the product of someone’s expression, labor, and intent. For that reason, please refer to our sparsely annotated, mini-clip-playlist of artists at work on their art. Watch Picasso delight himself by drawings flowers. See Yayoi Kusama scribble madly away. Behold Basquiat spray painting wisdom on the walls of downtown New York. Remind yourself that this all did not just come to be, but spilled, splattered, and flowed out of our visual art icons — and it didn’t always come easy. … Read More

Design

A Survey of Obsessive Craftsmanship in Film

By Alison Nastasi on

It’s no secret that filmmakers are an obsessive bunch. Just look at Stanley Kubrick, who kept over one thousand boxes filled with photos, clippings, notes, and other items that he referred to. The exhibition Persol Magnificent Obsessions: 30 Stories of Craftsmanship in Film at the Museum of the Moving Image — the second in their series of three exhibits — uncovers more stories behind the crafting of ten painstakingly detailed films. One of a kind artifacts, production notes and artwork, costumes, and more are currently on display through August 19 — providing a rarely seen view into the creative processes of some of the world’s greatest filmmakers. If you can’t make it to New York to visit this fascinating show, we’ve got a few items from the exhibit to whet your filmic appetite. … Read More

Pop Culture

Famous Artworks Transformed into Sandwiches

By Alison Nastasi on

Artists Brittany Powell and Tae Kitakata were studio mates in art school and wanted to keep in touch — creatively speaking — after graduation. They started Low-Commitment Projects as a way to ” … share concepts and schemes without a huge outlay of time, energy, or money.” They alternate posting these quick “sketches” on their blog every Monday. We fell in love with Powell’s sandwich creations, in which she transformed famous works of art by Jackson Pollock, Damien Hirst, and many more — turning the iconic images into tasty sandwiches. It’s a simple, but brilliant concept that captures the spirit of each artist’s expression. Get hungry past the break, and take a closer look. … Read More

Art

Happy Birthday Basquiat: 10 Memorable Movies About Artists

By Marina Galperina on

There’s something about artists that makes them compelling biopic subjects, especially if there’s something sexy, traumatic, Bohemian and otherwise scandalous about their personal life. In honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s birthday — he would have been 51 today — we present a few recommendations, just to get you started. Here you will find those dramatic details artfully exploited on celluloid with various degrees of salaciousness and, we hope, some valuable background on Bacon’s, Van Gogh’s, and Kahlo’s actual artistic careers. First up? The birthday boy himself. … Read More

Pop Culture

Books, Booze, and Beds: 10 Legendary Haunts of Artists and Writers

By Emily Temple on

A patron of the arts as well as a visionary bookseller, George Whitman, the owner of Shakespeare & Company, the legendary English-language bookstore on the Left Bank in Paris, died this week at age 98. Writers flocked to his shop to browse, mingle, and even spend the night. To honor Whitman’s legacy, we decided to take a look at Shakespeare & Company, as well as several other storied haunts of artists, writers, poets and other intellectuals, from cafés to bookstores to hotels. Click through to check out our list, and let us know which currently happening spot you think will become the next artist hangout of legend in the comments. … Read More

Art

Photos of Famous Artists When They Were Young

By Caroline Stanley on

After running features on the childhood photos of both famous writers and rock stars over the past few weeks, it might seem like we’re a bit youth-obsessed at Flavorwire lately. But we promise that that’s not the case. We just think that there’s something fascinating about images of cultural icons snapped long before they’d become household names. It humanizes them a bit. And so, today we turn our focus on the art world — specifically, some of the most influential talents of the past 100 years. Click through to peep photos of everyone from a dashing young Andy Warhol (pictured here) to a breathtakingly adorable baby Yoko Ono. … Read More

Art

The 30 Harshest Artist-on-Artist Insults In History

By Marina Galperina on

Our recent author-on-author, filmmaker-on-filmmaker and musician-on-musician insults have proved that creative folk are only human, and occasionally enjoy a good rip on their industry compatriots. Artists are no different, albeit they do it a bit differently. What they lack in media exposure, they make up in specifics, attacking “sickly” lines and “filthy” shades or, like Salvador Dalí, outright making up verbs like “outuglying” to drive their insults. Naturally, a good portion of these revolve around artists cutting down each others’ relevancy — yesterday’s Renaissance “daubers” are today’s graffiti “toys.” Looks like the battle of egos will never go away. (Oh, good!) Here are 30 harshest historical and contemporary artist-on-artists insults. We’d love to hear yours in the comments. … Read More

Photography

Intimate Vintage Snapshots of Famous Artists

By Marina Galperina on

A seldom seen college-aged Andy Warhol broods in a turtleneck and black rimmed glasses next to gals in bikinis. Picasso holds a bushy pup by a smiling child, the photo hand-inscribed “his daughter with whom he’s very much in love.” These snapshots of renowned artists taken in the early ’20s through the mid ’70s were found tucked into diaries and documents at the Smithsonian Archives of American Art. The treasure of these images is not just in the intimate details — like Georgia O’Keeffe’s bathrobe and Jasper Jone’s contemplating slump — but also, in the vintage medium itself — the decaled edges, the whisk of sephia, the fuzzy sheen of a Polaroid flash — so dear in today’s age of instant digital photography. Peek into the private, unguarded moments of arty public people in our slideshow and catch “Little Pictures Big Lives” exhibit through October 3 at the Lawrence A. Fleischman Gallery at the Smithsonian. … Read More

Art

The 10 Best Photos of Artists at the Beach

By Paul Laster on

When the summer season hits, we become a little beach-obsessed here at Flavorpill. As a result, we recently combed the Internet to discover literary greats in old fashioned bathing outfits and rock stars in skimpy swim suits — which has led us to consider, what do artists do (and more importantly, wear) at the beach? From Pablo Picasso playing servant to his baby mama on the French Riviera and Salvador Dali using a washed-up starfish as a monocle on the Spanish coast to Tracey Emin promoting donkey rides on the English shore and Terence Koh flaunting his wedding dress in the East Hampton surf, we’ve found that most artists look fabulous on the beach — even if  hours in the studio have left them a little pasty. Click through our gallery of beached artists below. … Read More