Victorian Fairy Spotters
Victorian Fairy Spotters by James M. Bordeau
by James M. Bordeau
I was strolling around downtown Ann Arbor, MI yesterday and I ran across a series of whimsical and beautiful pieces by James (Jim) M. Bordeau in the WSG gallery on Main Street. He has created several brass and glass contraptions which he calls “Victorian Fairy Spotters,” as well as one “Steampunk Wand” (the curly one in the corner). I love the notion of a special tool just for finding fairies, and it made me think of one of my all time favorite books, Lady Cottington’s Pressed Fairy Book. I would have loved to handle them but it was an art gallery, not a store, so I resisted the urge to touch. The lighting made it difficult to take photos of the ones lying flat without casting shadows so I could only get a detail of the one above. The spotters were between approximately 8-14 inches in length. I haven’t been able to find much more information about the artist, but there is a very limited profile here.
Dystopian Metal: The Art of Greg Brotherton
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- Watchtower
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- 3 Wheeled Horn
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- Into the Void
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- Mercury 5000- It reminds me of Abraham Sapiens from Hellboy
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- Migraine Machine
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- Oracle
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- Search Engine
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- Sounding the Furnace
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- The Lift
Metal is one of the most satisfying mediums I have ever worked with and I hope to get a chance to do more in the future. But even if I never do, I will always love metal art. The strength and flexibility of the material means an artist is really only constrained by the bounds of their imaginations (okay, and sometimes their tools). I really enjoyed these metal men and the world I imagine them inhabiting, especially the “search engine” and the “observatory.”
You can find more of Greg Brotherton’s artwork (including many different angles of the pieces I chose for my post), as well as pictures from his studio here.
I always like to hear about people from the Midwest finding success, and it looks like Greg is one of those people. Here’s his bio:
“Born in Ames, Iowa, in 1968, Greg experienced a somewhat nomadic childhood, spending the majority of his youth in Utah and Colorado. His interest in the mechanical surfaced at age five, when he began disassembling anything with screws in it. By the age of twelve he had taught himself to mine his backyard with homemade explosives (no injuries!). Then, after being successfully ejected from a series of public and private learning institutions, Greg, equivalency test in hand, entered the Colorado Academy of Art, beginning his undergraduate studies at sixteen.
In 1987, after receiving a degree in graphic design, Greg set off for California. Over the next two decades, he forged a successful career as an award-winning commercial artist, while honing his skills as a sculptor.
With a consuming drive to build things that often escalate in complexity as they take shape, Greg’s work is compulsive. Working with hammer-formed steel and re-purposed objects, his themes tend to be mythological in nature, revealed through a dystopian view of pop culture.
Greg’s work has received international recognition, has been exhibited throughout the United States and is collected worldwide. In 2007, he was invited to serve as the featured artist at the Technology, Entertainment and Design (TED)Conference in Monterey, California, joining the ranks of some of the most prestigious artists, luminaries, and scientists of our time. He currently resides in Los Angeles, California, where he continues to sculpt and experiment.”
Gingersnap Creations: Valerie Brincheck
Gingersnap Creations: July Muse Showcase: Valerie Brincheck.
Mood Swings: Bob Dylan’s New Art Exhibit “Swings” Towards Steampunk
As if “Bobby D” couldn’t get any awesomer, it turns out he has a new exhibit opening today at London’s Halcyon Gallery. The photos of his studio made me absolutely drool over his shelves of scrap metal bounty. His show centers on gates made of scrap gears, and he had this to say about his inspiration:
“Gates appeal to me because of the negative space they allow. They can be closed but at the time they allow the seasons and breezes to enter and flow. They can shut you out or shut you in. In some ways, there is no difference.”
Bob Dylan in his studio (source: Gizmodo)
I noticed a comment on the Gizmodo article lamenting the application of the label Steampunk to his work because Dylan uses steel instead of cast iron. Does that mean that clothes containing lycra can’t be Steampunk? Or that “real” Steampunk makeup would include zinc oxide powder even though its poisonous? Steampunk is an aesthetic that often (though obviously not always) includes the appearance and outlines of clockwork, not unlike Dylan’s exhibition Mood Swings.
Bob Dylan in his studio (source: Gizmodo)
Source: http://gizmodo.com/hey-did-you-know-bob-dylan-is-a-steampunk-metalworker-1462363371
For Whom the Gear Turns 