Christopher Astley's work is a new discovery for me. I'm smitten with his sculptures and painted drawings. Working with wet bags of cement, bursting at the seams and an unusual matte palette, Christopher finds a way to create sculptures that are delicately sturdy. His color combinations of industrial basic and soft muted hues are beautiful and a little unsettling in just the way I love.
My friend, Arley-Rose Torsone is a monster graphic designer, font maker, sign painter, letterpress printer, musician, and fine artist. She took a little jewelry making class at Penland last summer. As all her classmates lost themselves in earring findings and brooch clasps, Arley went nuts scrounging for scrap metal and banging it into letter form sculptures. Starting this Thursday night, January 27, these magnificent alphabet wonders can be seen at Craftland in Providence, along with many other pieces of Arley's art. I guarantee they will make you smile and look at letters in a new way. Arley has a twinkle in almost everything she does and has the following to say about her work-
"The thing I like about type is that each letter is like a person. They each have their own quirky way of existing, and yet they still seem to function properly. I like the way they fit and flirt with each other like capoeira dancers... or sometimes stand next to each other like strangers waiting in line at the DMV. I like to explore the wild world of type through letterpress, drawing, painting, digital type design and three-dimensional sculpture."
Opening reception January 27th, 5-8 pm and will run through February 26. For more info go here.
