Masha Ryskin | Time Travel | Boston (USA) | By Lee Fleming

Masha Ryskin is a Russian-born printmaker and multi-disciplinary artist currently based in Providence, Rhode Island. Currently represented by the Candita Clayton Gallery, Ryskin has worked, exhibited and taught in the United States, Europe, Costa Rica, and Indonesia. Ryskin’s art is best described in her on words:

“A sense of place and belonging is increasingly important to me, especially since my immigration from the Soviet Union. As a result, my work explores landscape and its elements through direct experience of the environment around me. I take bits and pieces of my surroundings and assemble them into imaginary environments. The work investigates the concepts of history, personal memories and everyday rituals, as well as identity and assimilation.”

Ryskin’s limited edited book Time Travel is a beautiful, ethereal accordion book screen-printed on both sides of a sheet of double-matte mylar (Dimensions: 5” x 25”). She created each of the ten books by embellishing them with pen and thread, combining layers of textural drawings, halftone elements and snippets from her sketchbooks.

To view more of Ryskin’s works visit her Website.

Sean Woolsey | Costa Mesa, California (US) | By Lee Fleming

A fine artist and craftsman, Southern California based Sean Woolsey creates unique furniture, art and photography following an unorthodox creative process. Woolsey’s hand-made wooden furniture is crafted using traditional techniques and a mathematical approach, whereas his artwork is more experimental. Woolsey early inspiration can be traced back to his childhood; he grew up among a family of artists, his great grandmother was a talented landscape and oil painter and his closest inspiration, his father, a stained glass artist and film photographer.

Inside his Californian studio in Costa Mesa, you’ll note examples of Woolsey’s cross-disciplinary artworks that range from abstract copper paintings to wooden tables, items of homeware and skateboards. His craft approach is largely influenced by his appreciation for the Japanese philosophy Wabi-sabi, an aesthetic centred on the acceptance of transience and imperfection to find true beauty.

Woolsey’s pieces are inspired by his travels and the photography taken on his adventures, shot entirely in film. The photograph that inspired him to create the artwork, whether an image of the colour palette, patterns or textures, accompanies each piece. But most interestingly is Woolsey’s choice of materials, his art is created on sheet metal and he uses paints, patinas and water-based acids to cause chemical reactions with the metal. Once he’s satisfied with the outcome, the metal is sealed with epoxy resin to prevent any further change and framed using black walnut. Each piece of art also bears Woolsey’s signature on a brass inlay plaque.

To find out more visit Sean Woolsey’s website or check out his online shop where his furniture and artwork is available to purchase.

Ai Weiwei Evidence Exhibiton | Berlin (GER)

Acclaimed international artist Ai Weiwei recently opened his latest solo exhibition in the 1881 Martin-Gropius-Bau hall in Berlin. Weiwei has installed 6,000 wooden stools across a vast, cavernous space in the former arts and crafts museum; an enormous undertaking, the exhibition displays works that have never before been shown in Germany. Stools (2014) contains many references to Chinese dynastic history and the installation is part of the Evidence exhibition that showcases many new works by Weiwei; it runs until Monday 7th July.

'Empire State of Pen' by Patrick Vale | London (UK)

Our appreciation for capturing a location from a unique viewpoint is the drive for our exploration and is fundamental in our design approach of ‘mapping out a city’. Our sense of spatial awareness and approach to highlight a community of independents is the conveyance of better living. A city can and will always be viewed from a differing perspective, one person to the next, from ground zero to a roof top. The city drawings by Hackney based artist and illustrator Patrick Vale are a demonstration to how we view a city, be it as a local or a visitor.

Patrick whose idiosyncratic sketches of major cities are incredibly complex, built up by a multitude of layers has lead him to international acclaim, large and highly detailed, Patrick’s freehand drawings render a sense of history and character, making us intrigued; we peer deeper into the makeup of a city. Each drawing shows the intricate structures of fire escapes and rooftops as much as it does the famous landmarks that makes a city iconic and instantly recognised. Often choosing a very high vantage point, Patrick creates work that represents vast swathes of a city, which invite us to investigate and relate to.

Patrick is best known for his work based on New York City, where his freehand drawing ‘Empire State of Pen’, a view of Manhattan from the Empire State Building was documented in a time-lapsed film captured from five days of intensive drawing. View Patrick’s portfolio to find out more about his work past and future.