Friday, April 10, 2020

Noteworthy Paper & Press: Beautiful Stationery, Greeting Cards and More
















Noteworthy Paper & Press was founded in 2008 by artist and printmaker, Taylor Valliant and graphic designer, Amy Dolan. The brand offers hand illustrated and hand lettered beautiful cards, stationery, paper goods and other gift items from their retail location in the beautiful mountain town of Missoula, Montana. Their aim is to bring fresh designs inspired by their love for nature, outdoor and art. 

They letterpress print many of their products on a 1952 Heidelberg Windmill. Their other products such as notebooks, notepads, tea towels, wrapping paper etc. are either locally sourced or made in the U.S.A. whenever possible. You can find the entire collection of their products here and here.

Thursday, April 9, 2020

Ell Violet Creates Heirloom Embroidered Gifts and Home Decor














Ell Violet is mixed media artist based in New Zealand. Her career as an embroiderer began in 2016 when she received a huge stash of threads in inheritance. Her hand embroidery is inspired by the natural as well as imaginary world where anything is possible. "Combined with delicate application of embroidery and various textural mediums, her work tells stories about the fragile and teetering existence of her subjects and the world they inhabit."

She carefully picks colors to incorporate in her work and contemplates what details to include in her work. This level of attention makes her "thread painted" pieces look close to real. Each of Ell's work is quite labor intensive and can take hours to finish. Ell creates heirloom and keepsake embroidered pieces that can be cherished for years to come. She also makes series of embroidered home decor items and jewelry. You can find patterns of her designs on her web store that can be downloaded at home to make your own masterpiece. 

Wednesday, April 8, 2020

Mark Langan Creates Masterpieces Using Used Cardboard Boxes

















Mark Langan is a self-taught artist presently living in Brunswick Hills, Ohio a suburb of Cleveland. Since 2004, he has been making amazing sculptures uses cardboard boxes. He explored and experimented with various mediums for as long as he can remember but he finds corrugated boxes and paper as a responsive reclaimed product.

Where you and me will not look at cardboard boxes twice as something that be used for creating art with, Mark has dedicated his life creating masterpieces with this unusual material. Mark uses a razor, knife, cutting edge, rule and a mat, glue and used cardboard to create detailed pieces of art.“It is a green, eco-friendly material that comes into the fold of every person around the globe on a day-to-day basis.” Each of Mark's sculpture takes many hours of patience and labor of love. His projects require him to cut thousands of individual pieces that are glued one after the other. 

Mark's pieces showcased at several eco-friendly events including NASA and the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo’s America Recycles Day, Beachwood’s Green Dream event and at The Ohio Department of Natural Resources. His work was displayed in Ripley’s Believe it or Not Museums in San Francisco and Atlantic City. Mark’s work has been featured in several books and magazines. He has created logo for WKYC-TV, Midwest Box Company, M&M Mars Global, and Propr a clothing brand by David Arquette.

Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Rachel Thornton Combines Wood Carving and Print Making Techniques To Create Unique Artwork













Rachel Thornton is an artist and a print maker living in the rural Yorkshire Dales. In 2013, Rachel graduated with a degree in Fine Arts. While she was studying, she began to exhibit her artwork world wide including the Wrexham International Print Exhibition. She has been experimenting with various techniques and materials, it is her love for experimentation which has led her into creating a unique artwork. She combines printmaking, painting and wood carving methods to create one off unique artwork. Rachel's original illustration is lino printed on to a carefully selected wood piece, the natural textures and grains of the wood enhances the artwork.

Rachel works from a creative space called STUDIO 42 where she also conducts printmaking workshops. Rachel has shown her work at Art and Craft Fairs around the UK as well as in New York, Pakistan, and Australia. You can follow her creative journey on Instagram for new work, and announcements of workshops and exhibitions.