Abandoned coal mine turned into 55-acre land art

It's uplifting to see eyesores and environmental burdens transformed into services of a wholly different kind.

The above image shows us the work of well known landscape artist Charles Jencks, which has turned the ruins of an abandoned open cast coal mine in Scotland into a magnificent cosmology-themed park. Jencks' previous work includes the Garden of Cosmic Speculation in Dumfries, and the Beijing Olympic Park's Black Hole Terrace.

Dubbed "The Crawick Multiverse," the 55-acre landmark in Upper Nithsdale looks like a modern-day Stonehenge that is expected to attract a diverse range of visitors, including art and design enthusiasts. Materials found on the site, from tonnes of earth to some 2,000 large boulders, were used to create the majestic land art.

The £1m project is operated by a charitable trust and paid for by the Duke of Buccleuch, who owns the largest private landholding in the United Kingdom. The construction of the cosmic landscape began in 2012. It was officially unveiled last month at a launch ceremony featuring a cast of 30 artists performing music and poetry.

[h/t: Contemporist]

Comments

James DeRosso's ceramic monsters

I really like these whimsical ceramic creatures by James DeRosso. Yes, they have bulging eyes and toothy grins, but they're not scary at all. The Portland-based artist started making cute monsters while he was a student to jokingly create gargoyle-like guardians for the kiln. After other students kept taking his quirky little figures, he realized there was a market for them. "I'm enjoying the whole monster making niche," James says. "It's amazingly gratifying to be doing ceramics full time and especially to be a teacher introducing kids to the joy of clay." Be sure to visit his website and like his Facebook page for the latest monster news.

Eric van Straaten's 3D-Printed Statuettes

I can't remember when I first became entranced with Eric van Straaten 's 3D-printed sculptures. I think I stumbled onto his work through tumblr when I was searching for new artists to follow. Eric's attention to detail is pretty amazing, and the image of the eroticized child-woman is familiar throughout his work. Most of his hyper surreal pieces are 3D-printed in sandstone material, which are created by laying down a thin layer of gypsum powder and using a binding agent and color inks to print a pattern onto it. Once the entire model is printed, it is withdrawn from the print bed and the excess powder is removed. The model is then sealed and ready for display. "I think that the girls I create in my work are visualizations of my own feelings, fantasies and thoughts," the Dutch artist explains. "The girls actually look like someone I (used to) know and the different ‘portraits’ tell something about what I think of myself in regards to her or women ...

Hand-Painted Movie Posters by Tony Stella

In the 70s and 80s movie theaters in Manila were usually standalone buildings with nice seats and red curtains. To sell tickets, cinemas needed to advertise their offerings. But they did not have the original posters, or the means to print alternatives. So they made their own, commissioning local artists to hand-paint them. I really miss those hand-painted posters and billboards, which conveyed an artistry that was a form of visual hyperbole. But hand-made objects always have a way of returning. In this digital age, people will always look for things made by hand. I recently stumbled across the work of Tony Stella, whose genuinely cool movie posters have caught the eye of film enthusiasts and art lovers worldwide. He likes to work in watercolor and ink wash but sometimes he will make an oil painting, depending on the film. Tony's very active on social media, and his Tumblr blog contains a massive collection of illustrated movie posters that are often better than the original. ...

finding cain

Search This Blog