Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Church Keys To the City. Map-Engraved Beer Bottle Opener Necklaces.









Husband and wife design duo, Vivian Cheng and Eric Jean-Louis of Blend Creations have added some new designs to their inspired collections of modern stainless steel jewelry. Joining their designer artist pendants, bar code, QR code and custom photo necklaces are engraved pendants that double as a functioning bottle openers. The abstract looking patterns are maps of the birthplaces of eight well known and loved beers from around the world.



Now, no matter where you are, you can open a bottle in style. Better yet, if you find yourself drunk and wandering the streets of Amsterdam, you can just glance down and find your way to more booze.



Leuven, Belgium the birthplace of Stella Artois:





Dublin, Ireland, the birthplace of Guinness:





Mexico City, the birthplace of Corona:





Burton upon Trent, the UK birthplace of Bass:





Amsterdam, the Netherlands birthplace of Heineken:





Bremen, Germany birthplace of Beck's:





Groenlo, Netherlands birthplace of Grolsch:





Newcastle upon Tyne, UK birthplace of Newcastle:





Each pendant comes on a hand-knotted waxed cotton cord that can adjust from approximately 20" to 32" in length.





Pendant size: About 1.75" dia x 1/16" thick



Pre-order these Worldy necklaces here!



Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Pharmacy Restaurant Ashtrays by Artist Damien Hirst Now Available.









Contemporary artist Damien Hirst tried his hand at the restaurant business in 1998 when he opened the art-filled Pharmacy Restaurant + Bar in London. Filled with pseudo-scientific pharmacy-themed items, Hirst curated every design element from metallic pill-printed wallpaper and pill-shaped ashtrays.





above: the gold and silver pill covered wallpaper by Hirst for the restaurant.



The gourmet restaurant featured fine dining and cocktails with names like "Cough Syrup" or "Voltarol Retarding Agent" served up by a waitstaff decked out in surgically inspired outfits designed by Prada.



The Pharmacy restaurant closed its doors in 2003. Sotheby's then auctioned off the contents after the restaurant closure, with bidding ranging from £1,920 for a pair of salt and pepper shakers to £1.2m for a giant mock medicine cabinet.





above: The Sotheby's Hirst Auction catalog.



However, these ashtrays weren't included in the Pharmacy auction at Sothebys on October 18th 2004, so now they are available for purchase from Other Criteria.



Pharmacy Ashtray 8630 by Damien Hirst, 2011:



Painted Aluminium

111 x 111 x 31 mm

Unlimited edition



Pharmacy Ashtray THREE HEADS by Damien Hirst, 2011:



Painted Aluminium

91 x 91 x 31 mm

Unlimited edition





Pharmacy Ashtray LILLI U53 by Damien Hirst, 2011:



Painted Aluminium

107 x 93 x 31 mm



Pharmacy Ashtray N by Damien Hirst, 2011:



Painted Aluminium

111 x 111 x 31 mm





Pharmacy Ashtray NICOTINE by Damien Hirst, 2011:



Clear glass

99 x 99 x 31 mm

Unlimited edition



Pharmacy Ashtray SALVOY 1023 by Damien Hirst, 2011:



Painted Aluminium

131 x 73 x 31

Unlimited edition



Pharmacy Ashtray WYATH 765 by Damien Hirst, 2011:



Painted Aluminium

99 x 99 x 31 mm

Unlimited edition



Please note that if used as an ashtray (or other than for display purposes) the gallery cannot guarantee that it will retain its original condition.



The painted aluminium ashtrays shown are priced at £450. The Glass Nicotine ashtray is £300.



Contact Other Criteria for ordering info.

Monday, August 29, 2011

Guns, Bones & Steel; The Gothic Reliquaries Of Al Farrow









Look closely at these incredible sculptures and you'll notice the mosque and church-like structures are created with guns, gun parts, bullets, artillery, gears, chains, bullet shells and bone fragments.



These reliquaries by Al Farrow mix munitions with religion and result in some very impressive and detailed three dimensional projects. Below are several of his pieces shown in chronological order of their creation.





above: Reliquary for the Extended Family, Chains, Wood, Glass, Bone, Lead, Iron, Found Objects, 18"h X 25"w X 9"d, 1995







above: Trigger Finger of Santa Guerro (I), Gun Parts, Bullets, Steel, Glass, Bone, 25"h X 14"dia.







above: Trigger Finger of Santa da Guerra (II), Guns, Bullets, Bullet Shells, Steel, Bone 20"h X 16"dia, 1996







above: Piece of the True Gun of Saint Guerre, Gun Parts*, Bullets*, Steel, Bone, Crucifix, 58"h X 18"w X 16"d,1996







above: Leg Bone of Santo Guerro, Gears, Gun Parts, Bullets, Steel, Glass, Bone, Crucifix, 47"h X 18"dia, 1998





above: Foot Bone of Santa Guerro, Tank Periscope, Bullets, Bullet Shells, Brass, Glass, Bone, 18"h X 17"w X 9"d, 1996







above: Skull Fragment of Heilige Krieg, Guns, Gun Parts, Bullets, Steel, Bone, Nazi Gas Valve, Piece of Berlin Wall, Cast Resin, 59"h X 27"w X 27"d 1996







above: Martyred Hand and Gun of Saint Guerre, Bullets, Gun, Glass, Lead Shot, Wood, Bone, 10"h X 10"w X 8"d, 1996









above: Skull of Santo Guerro, Guns, Gun parts, Bullets, Lead Shot, Steel, Glass, Bone, Steel, Crucifix, 42"h X 20"w X 20"d, 1998







above: Trigger Finger of Santa Guerro (III) Guns, Bullets, Bullet Shells, Steel, Glass, Lead Shot, Bone, Crucifix, 33"h X 13"w X 13"d, 2001







above: The Last Finger of Santo Guerro (V), Guns, Gun Parts, Bullets, Bullet Shells, Glass, Steel, Bone, 11"h X 10"w X 10"d, 2001









above: Synagogue (I), Guns, Bullets, Shot, Steel, Antique Torah Cover, Glass, 32"h X 36.5"w X 27.5"d, 2005









above: Trigger Finger of Santo Guerro (VI), Bullets, Guns, Glass, Shot, Steel, Bone, 22"h X 16.5"w X 16.5"d, 2006









above: Fingernail of the Trigger Finger of Santo Guerro, Bullets, Guns, Glass, Steel, Fingernail, Antique Textile, 12.5"h X 10"w X 10"d, 2007







above: Mausoleum (II), 29”h X 24”w X 24”d, Bullets, Artillery Shells, Steel, 2008







above: Synagogue (II), 36”h X 28”w X 44”d, Guns, Bullets, Shot, Steel, Polycarbonate, Antique Torah Cover, 2008







Al Farrow (above) was born in Brooklyn, NY and has lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for more than thirty years. An accomplished sculptor in a wide variety of media from bronze to clay to assemblage, Farrow generally adopts the language of an historical period in his work, updating the imagery or materials to make cogent observations about contemporary society. Past projects have included bowls created in the style of the Mimbres culture, an indigenous people who lived in what is now the southwest and northern Mexico, and painted in their traditional single reed brush style with images of B-1 bombers, radiation symbols, tanks and other military images.



In recent years he has used munitions—bullets, guns, hand grenades, bombs—to make three-dimensional projects that resemble Christian reliquaries, Islamic mosques and a Jewish menorah (shown below):







Al Farrow’s work is included in the public collections of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the San Jose Museum of Art, 21c Museum (Louisville, Kentucky), All Saints Episcopal Church (Pasadena, California), and the Government of the State of Israel. He lives and works in San Rafael, California andhas exhibited with Catharine Clark since 1994. (bio courtesy of Catharine Clark Gallery)



Sculptor Al Farrow has had numerous solo exhibitions since 1970, and is currently represented by Catharine Clark Gallery in San Francisco. His work has been in group shows at the Oakland Art Gallery, the San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery, Falkirk Cultural Center in Marin, the San Francisco Art Institute, and the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, among many others. He has over 20 years of bronze casting experience. His work is in many important public and private collections around the world, including the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the di Rosa Preserve in Napa, and other collections in New York, Germany, Italy, and Hong Kong.



Be sure to see his amazing cathedral:





alfarrowcathedral.com

photos of cathedral in process by Marty Tibor



Al Farrow