In 1969, raw sewage floated through the waterways of New York City and soot from smokestacks choked the air. The situation was much the same in other American cities. John Adams and his wife Patricia decided to do something about it, creating the Natural Resources Defense Council in New York City. Today, the group has 1.3 million members along with a staff of over 300 scientists, lawyers, and......read more
Marissa Textor's graphite-on-paper drawings capture epic nature moments in a hyper realistic manner. In an art scene dominated by loose, gestural work, Textor's precision penciling stands out among the crowd. On her choice of subject matter, the Los Angeles-based artist says, "It's exciting to me. In an over-stimulated world this is the stuff the holds my attention and......read more
A small but influential gallery in Mexico called MYTO, which helped launch Fabian Pena to MAD fame (amazing exhibit through October in New York), represents several other inspiring Latin American artists. One of my newfound favorites is Cuban Yunior Marino. Marino creates “photographic paintings” framing, cropping and assembling simple photographs of nature into epic mental......read more
We could get used to working here. Designed by FLOAT architecture, 'Watershed' is a 100 square foot writer's studio that reveals the complex ecology around it. Little tunnels under the structure bring reptiles and amphibians into view through the floor-level window. A water collection basin, doubling as the front step, attracts birds and deer. All of the structure's parts are......read more
In his new show opening in Paris this weekend, Brooklyn-based artist Daniel Arsham zeroes in on the areas where the natural and the manufactured meet. Featuring ink drawings and 3D sculpture, "Animal Architecture" is a study in juxtaposition. A modernist architectural ruin is pictured inside a cave. A kangaroo looks perplexedly at a slab of concrete floating in the landscape. A......read more
In a split-second, a photographer captures a striking image of a rare Iberian wolf on the hunt, leaping over a farm gate. The image is selected from over 43,000 entries, netting photographer Jose Luis Rodriguez the award for Environment Wildlife Photographer of the Year. Unfortunately for Rodriguez, allegations have been raised challenging the photo's "veracity". It seems that his......read more
Photographer Hidenobu Suzuki has captured the idyllic landscapes of Japan in a remarkably tranquil light. Between the quiet foggy rivers, peaceful rice fields, and twilight at Mt. Fuji, there's something for everyone who's looking for a visually relaxing utopia. "My photographs are like Japanese paintings," Suzuki explains. "Japanese like to express emotions and spiritual feelings through......read more
Los Angeles duo Paige Wood and Steven Trezevant, aka The Peach Kings, have shared a new video for their hazy, distorted single "Be Around." The couple (an actual couple) turned to frequent collaborator Paul Trillo, a Brooklyn director who had already churned out two videos for the band. Trillo knocked it out of the park with this beautiful piece of film inspired by double exposed......read more
Danish experimental folk outfit Efterklang returns with a new video for the opening track off of Piramida, their fourth studio album due in September on 4AD. Directed by Oodls (creative duo Jakob Steen and Christoffer Frandsen), the clip for "Hollow Mountain" is appropriately expansive, exploring sweeping natural landscapes via a series of photographs that hang from the beams of a......read more
Landscape photography goes surreal in Alternate Perspectives, a dizzying series of travel photos from New York-based Randy Scott Slavin. The photos, shot by Slavin on his sojourns around America, are each taken at a single location or landmark, then pieced together to create a 360 degree perspective in a flat image. The "stitching" technique results in a trippy stereographic projection. "While......read more