In honor of International Medical Corp’s ongoing humanitarian work in Haiti, please join LACMA for a preview reception on Thursday, April 22nd for the exhibition Haiti: Before 1.12.10

Diem Chau has created some beautiful Crayola crayon sculptures, taking inspiration from the 12 signs of the Chinese zodiac. Click through for more about the gallery show and process.

Serge Gainsbourg by The Felt Mistress

(via Another Mag)

by Rachel Rovay

by Kelly Allen

(via LadiesLotto.com)

Artist Benjamin Anderson’s ‘Just Add Water’ paintings.

I think this is a good example of creative co-branding, however, is it too forced and obvious? In other words, what’s there for the people at these events besides free product and art? Is it missing fluidity? Is it borderline sophomoric? Talk among yourselves.

Dazed and Tiger are gearing up for their Chinese New Year’s event in London’s Chinatown

“Chinese New Year in London’s Chinatown next Thursday with Dazed’s series of specially curated film, art, music and photography events. These represents three of the Tiger Lucky 8 events with an additional five events taking place all around the UK. Representing the elements of the Chinese zodiac; Earth, Wood, Metal, Water and Fire, the events have been curated by Josef Valentino, the brains behind the Worthless pop-up exhibition. ‘When Tiger Beer invited me to curate ‘The Tiger Lucky 8’ I was adamant to work with a collection of talent who would revolutionize the way people interacted with Chinese New Year. The end result is a series of diverse and engaging exhibitions that respond intuitively towards the five elements of the Zodiac, whilst also demonstrating a rich breed of talent from across the UK,’ explains Valentino.”

Crochetdermy by Shauna Richardson

Kaws and Kiehl’s collaborate to support and foster artistic expression. I like.

100% of net profits for Kiehl’s Limited Edition Creme de Corps Holiday Collection will support RxArt, a non-profit national organization, committed to fostering artistic expression and awareness through the challenging, yet rewarding task of engaging young patients through contemporary art in pediatric hospitals.

About KAWS

Brian Donnelly, professionally known as KAWS, began his artistic career as a graffiti artist in the early 1990s, and since then has built an identity that had its genesis in guerilla imagery added to billboards and bus shelters. Through his company OriginalFake, he has released limited edition works. In addition to Kiehl’s, he has collaborated on design projects with Commes Des Garcons, Marc Jacobs, and A Bathing Ape. Recently he has worked with Kanye West to create the cover art for 808s & Heartbreak which appeared on a Times Square billboard. In 2009, his art was selected for the cover of the annual “Best of New York” issue of New York Magazine. Born 1974 in New Jersey, KAWS graduated with a BFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York. He is currently working on his first solo museum show at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, opening June 2010. A book titled KAWS, a survey of his work, will be published by Rizzoli in June 2010.

About RxART

RxArt, a non-profit organization, is committed to fostering artistic expression and awareness through the challenging yet rewarding task of engaging young patients through contemporary art in pediatric hospitals. By curating installations in hospital settings, RxArt provides a humanistic and creative surrounding that helps to relieve stress and anxiety, while increasing appreciation for contemporary art. Kiehl’s Since 1851 has been supporting RxART since 2002. For more information on RxART visit www.rxart.net.

(photo by moi)

Harakiri School Girls, a painting by Makoto Aida.

Aida received his MFA in 1991 from Tokyo National University and lives and works in Tokyo. He is represented by Mizuma Art Gallery in Tokyo and has had solo shows at London’s IBID Projects and at Lisa Dent Gallery in San Francisco. His group shows include The American Effect: Global Perspectives on the United States, 1990-2003 at the Whitney Museum of American Art and the XXV Biennale de São Paulo. His work is in the collections of the Tokyo Museum of Art and the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art.

Aida’s videos, installations, paintings, and manga books treat terrorism and pedophilia as artistic fodder. Though Aida tackles his subjects with conscious irony, the results can still be offensive. One example is Imagine, a painting that puts the viewer in a pilot’s seat headed straight for an abstract target — the World Trade Center. The video I-DE-A, from the same 2005 show at Lisa Dent, is a shot of Aida’s naked back; while looking at pink Japanese characters spelling out “beautiful little girl,” the artist pleasures himself for 50 minutes.

Harakiri School Girls is representative of Aida’s work on young females, many of which are amputees. He contorts young, stifled bodies as if they were delectable treats ready for consumption (Edible Artificial Girls, Mi-Mi Chan is the most obvious example). In other illustrations, the women have stubs for hands and legs and sport nothing except dog collars. The artist’s work makes its viewers see society’s cruel misogyny — it comes as no surprise that Aida was a frequent political activist in college. (LM)

Makoto Aida
Harakiri School Girls, 2006

(via my sister’s wall)