Colossal and The Burning House

Another student guest post.

"Colossal" is an art and design-centric blog that has been described by the creator, Christopher Jobson, as a blog "that explores the intersection of art, design, and physical craft." The premise of the site is connecting viewers to different artists and art projects, the majority of which feature odd materials, locations, or ideas. The blog is meant as a sort of "in" to the less widely publicized art world. It offers pictures and videos of the various artwork accompanied by articles or comments on the pieces. The works range from pictures of smog-filled snow globes to huge portraits made of lace. It is extremely well organized, although an excessive emphasis  is put on how odd materials used are/ how these things have "never been done before" as opposed to looking at the artwork itself, which is quite beautiful and important independent of the various circumstances (although those are of course worth mentioning). The pictures and videos are always in high quality however, and the contributors are good about offering up links for those seeking to continue more on a certain piece, coupled with constant updating, it's impossible to grow bored with the site.
Some of my favorites from the site include works by Seth Casteel, Josh Ritter, Sean OhlenKamp, Hekkei Leis, Nomerz, Peihang Huang, and Robert Proch.
            “Dogs Under Water” by Seth Casteel is, unsurprisingly, an album of pictures taken of dogs as they dive underwater. The pictures are taken from an odd angle at the bottom of the pool, so that the focus of the photos is the dog’s face, with their bodies narrowing away from the frame. This collection is one of my favorites simply because the pictures are hysterical, with the water causing the loose gums of the dogs to balloon so that their teeth seem to be bared and their jaws unnaturally wide, at odds with the rest of their faces which appear relaxed and friendly. The whole effect is an adorable and ridiculous album with a simple yet genius premise.

            Colossal exposed me much more to the medium of stop motion videos and there are two in particular I want to talk about: Josh Ritter’s stop motion music video for his song “Love Making its Way Back Home” and “The Joy of Books” made by the Ohlenkamps inside of their bookstore. As far as Josh Ritter’s goes, the music is lovely and the cut-out figures that tell the story in the video are solid outlines made of construction paper. No drawing grace the outlines and no attempts are made at giving them distinct features and the progress of the story, which follows a man on an odd road trip, is slow and steady, making the film feel more like a simple story of life and the human condition in general than a quick anecdote.

            Another stop motion I particularly liked was “The Joy of Books," a whimsical video featuring a bookstore at night, where the books and merchandise move about to a fast, electric beat. It’s like watching a childhood dream come true (there’s one moment in particular, in which a tiny book helps another book to flip its pages as he reads himself with a clip-on light that is simply magical).
            In a different medium, a group of drawings done in graphite called “EverydayReflections” by Hekkei Leis is another fantastic collection. The attention to detail and photo-like representations of people as they as they stare ahead (as though into a mirror) is stunningly done. The idea of showing “everyday life” is, I find, usually poorly executed- either because the artist over-exaggerates the grime and boredom of the average person’s life or because the location or activity chosen is implausible or uninspired. That’s the reason I’m a fan of this piece; I liked the idea of reflections, as the viewer is much more connected than if they were just looking in on someone and it feels incredibly personal to be looking at someone brushing their teeth or combing their beard but it’s not invasive, as though Leis is trying to make some comment on the different character’s psyches- the drawings aren’t overdramatic or nuanced. They’re simple and straightforward and relatable.
            Another favorite is the street art done by Nomerz, an artist who paints quirky faces on rundown buildings in Russia. The faces are all individualized, but all have in common an uncharacteristically wide set face (as there’s no outline of a face; the shape of the building dictates the shape of the head), extremely far apart eyes, and more proportional noses and mouths (most of which are quirked in a smirk or some other bemused expression). They all look zany and wise as they peer out from stout, dilapidated buildings.
            Lastly “The Fine Art of Barbie” by Peihang Huang and Robert Proch’s acrylics are two groups of paintings I like. Peihang Huang’s oil paintings are just beautiful. Each painting features the head and shoulders of an attractive woman reclining. It’s hard to tell if it is the same woman in every picture, as she is lovely, but in a sort of simple, idealized way (as she is inspired by Barbie). What makes the paintings particularly arresting are the bright hues used and the blocky painting style in which large smudges of colors are used to create the faces. The colors aren’t jarring, and for the most part blend together in certain regions of the face. The technicolor beauty of the women as they lay down, eyes closed or downcast, make the viewer feel as though they are stumbling into some surreal, luxurious, saccharine world.
            An artist with a similar penchant for bright colors, Robert Proch, paints energetic acrylics in which people are made up of blocks and wisps of colors with cold toned palettes (mostly blues steel grays), turned at odd angles with blurred edges, giving off a chaotic vibe. Rather than a surreal, saccharine world of excessive beauty and luxurious colors, his paintings are more discordant and hyper but nonetheless wonderful.

“The Burning House” offers a very different kind of blog, but it is also made wonderful through its various contributors and wide array of objects featured. The premise of this site is people offer up pictures of the 10 things they would take with them if their house were on fire. The items are artfully arranged and accompanied with a key and explanation, as well as (usually) the name, location, age, and gender of the person whose photo it is. One thing that makes the blog particularly interesting is how the contributors are from all over the world. It offers up an artful view of the human psyche. As the blurb on the site says, "think of it as an interview of you condensed into one question". If “The Burning House” doesn't do it for you, there's a somewhat similar blog that features pictures of teenagebedrooms, although it's a bit more informal and at times irritating (as some of the bloggers tend to put on airs).