Results tagged “visualart”

Sometimes when we're on Craigslist, searching for "single male 50-85 heir Monte Carlo casino vacations D/D-free," we take a break from our romance quest to click on the "Artists" clicky. And every so often, we encounter cool stuff like these elegantly crafted Styrofoam coffee cups by Newport Beach, Cal.-based artist/animator Cheeming Boey. According to a June 2009 article by the Orange County Register, Boey is originally from Malaysia and has been making cup art since a day in 2006 when, sitting in a cafe and looking for something to doodle on, he grabbed an empty cup from the trash and started drawing. Nowadays, Boey sells his tricked-out styro-vessels for a few Jacksons ("aaaaaaaa," seen here, is $230); cups come packaged in a sturdy case. If you'd like to watch him at work, this time-lapse video features Boey making one of his ornate pieces. Score another point for resourceful recycling.

In addition to teaching, art-making and having his work shown in galleries and museums on several continents, School of the Art Institute of Chicago professor and artist Ken Fandell is a long-distance runner who probably covers more miles in a week than most do in a year. All of that time spent engaged in the struggle of mind over body seems to surface in his work, which usually employs a conflict of some sort — for example, the epic vs. the banal — to explore heavy subjects such as infinity, control, and our physical limitations as humans. But it's not all about the meta: Fandell's work is as much about humor as it is about the big questions of human existence. Recently we visited his home studio to talk about marathons, titles, and the artistic merits of the Budget Smart Brain.

Lunchbreath (not his real name) is a Chicago-based creative agency director whose drawings poke fun at the design world and contemporary American culture. Craig Berman -- aka Fueledbycoffee -- is a Chicago-based industrial designer/creative director whose drawings often poke fun at the same things. Since May, they've collaborated on "Core-toons," a weekly cartoon slot at the esteemed online design magazine Core77. Recently we talked to them about their process and work.

In 2001, Chicago artist MartinJon embarked on an ambitious project to paint the portraits of 1,000 different people. Eight years later, he's about halfway through -- though, he says, the project might never end. It has become more about sharing the creative experience than about meeting a quota.

Chicagoist has had a bit of a love affair with Pritzker Pavilion this summer, but that’s mostly because the Millenium Park events calendar has been stuffed with so many fabulous free events this outdoor season.