There’s something magical about the nostalgia that lives in Anton Van Hertbruggen’s paintings.
The color palette seems somehow vintage, while giving a lovely feeling of summers spent relaxing and exploring the woods.
With giant wild creatures, and a sense of 1960s sensibility, we love this artist’s work.
Fantastical animals and vintage cabin vibes abound in his work.
See more of his expressive work on Instagram.
Images © Copyright Anton Van Hertbruggen.
This series by French artist 8th Project features a range of pop-culture and video game characters, all abstracted in a style of Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky.
The abstraction feels fresh and new, while still retaining just enough of the character’s trademark color or shape to remain recognizable.
From Mario and Luigi to Mickey Mouse and The Pink Panther, it’s a fun collection that shows the power of art to inspire.
Prints of these characters are available on 8th Project’s website.
Can you name them all?
Images © Copyright 8th Project. Via Inspiration Grid:
There’s a fascinating moment when viewing Brazilian artist Rafael Silveira’s work, where you can get lost in the multi-colored, gradient skies.
The classically styled portraits and still lives devolve into a psychedelic daydream of vibrancy and surrealism. Faces become empty space. Volcanoes erupt from 70’s style suits. And those colorful skies rain fuschia clouds.
Based in Curitiba, Brazil, Silveira’s work invites viewers into a bizarre world where reality intertwines with fantasy, challenging perceptions and evoking fascinating introspection.
For gallery settings, the frames of the paintings are as wild and evocative as the artwork itself, bringing the pieces alive.
See more of Silveira’s captivating work on Instagram and his website.
Images © Copyright Rafael Silveira. Images used with artist’s permission.
Thinking about sprucing up your home, but don’t want to dive into major renovations? You’re not alone. Sometimes, the most minor projects make the most significant difference, not just in how your place looks and feels, but also in how much it’s worth. So, why not tackle a few simple upgrades that pay off in the long run? Let’s walk through some easy home improvement ideas that anyone can do, no fancy skills required.
Ever wonder why a newly painted room just seems cleaner and brighter? Whether it’s the walls on the inside or the trim on the outside, a new coat of paint is one of the quickest ways to give your space a facelift. And don’t worry about choosing a color—neutral colors are crowd-pleasers. They allow potential buyers to envision themselves calling the house home without being distracted by the boldness of the color. And painting is a low-cost and immediately noticeable option.
Kitchens sell homes, too, but you don’t need to redo the kitchen to give it a new look completely. Simply replace your cabinet handles, faucets, or light fixtures. These minor adjustments can refresh the whole appearance of your kitchen. It’s like giving your home a mini facelift without the mess and cost of a complete redo. And new hardware always does look a bit classy, doesn’t it?
First impressions count, especially with your patio or front yard. Instant landscaping, such as trimming bushes, adding flowers, or incorporating colorful pots, is a great way to boost curb appeal. And don’t forget lighting! Outdoor lighting not only enhances the beauty of your home but also makes it safer. A new front door or even a new doorknob can give your house a boost on the block.
Bathrooms don’t have to be expensive endeavors, either. Simple makeovers, such as regrouting tile, replacing an outdated faucet, or adding a new vanity mirror, can make your bathroom smell and appear fresh and inviting. It’s amazing what a little elbow grease and some extra touches can do for a room that is bound to get overlooked, yet is highly necessary to consumers.
Everyone loves homes that save them money on the bills. Adding LED bulbs, smart thermostats, or low-flow faucets is an easy way to increase your home’s energy efficiency and value. These updates demonstrate that you value the planet and your wallet, which is a double win. And these small tweaks tend to pay for themselves in the long run.
This one may not be glamorous, but it’s really crucial. When did you last think about your septic system? A properly functioning septic system is of great concern to any homeowner—and to any prospective buyer, too. Scheduling a professional inspection for septic tank can save you from surprise repairs down the road. It’s a smart move that protects your investment and keeps everything running smoothly. Consider it a behind-the-scenes improvement that is just as important as what can be seen.
While regular inspections help prevent most issues, unexpected problems can still arise. Blockages or overflows may occur, requiring immediate attention to avoid property damage and health risks. If you’re unsure where to turn during such emergencies, a quick search for “emergency septic pumping near me” can connect you with qualified professionals who respond promptly and restore your system’s functionality.
Who does not want storage? Installing shelves, organizers, or closet upgrades can make a significant impact. It’s all about having your space function more efficiently for you. Buyers pick up on when a house has clever storage solutions because it equates to less clutter and more space to live comfortably.
Wrapping It Up
See? Increasing your home’s worth doesn’t necessarily involve ripping out walls or breaking the bank. Easy projects such as painting, replacing fixtures, enhancing your yard, and even inspecting your septic system can do wonders. So, why not get started? Choose one project, clear a weekend, and see how these little touches amount to a happier, more valuable home.
Instead of entire paintings, how about exploring a singular stroke of paint? Iranian artist Golsa Golchini has a fascinating take on an age-old medium.
Placing miniature figures into 3D paint strokes, we see snorkelers, divers, and skiers in a whole different way.
A great use of shadow add a surprising amount of depth to the figures.
It’s a clever and artistically effective technique. Via Colossal:
Images © Golsa Cholchini.
In an ideal world, you probably want a fresh, oasis-like home to welcome you at the end of each day when your bones are tired and your brain is fried. Just imagine a peaceful space where you can truly kick back, relax, and think about nothing.
Flash forward to reality where, for many of us, home is just another place to worry about. From endless housework to cluttered spaces, our rooms can all too quickly become stale, and ultimately unwelcoming. Before you know it, you may well prefer to stay at the office. At least that space feels fresh and clean without you needing to put any effort in!
This is a sad reality, and it takes the heart out of home. Luckily, if your rooms are feeling stale right now, there’s probably a good reason for it. Keep on reading to find out what that is, and what you can do about it.
Poor air quality at home has to be one of the leading reasons for an unwelcoming, stale-feeling. You’re hardly going to want to stick around if you’re hit with an undertone of musk every time you open the door! Unfortunately, interior spaces are prone to poor air quality, especially if you’re out of the house for extended periods.
As well as making for an unwelcoming return, the problem of poor air quality can wreak havoc on your health via issues that might include –
Things to try:
Your dank home might be dragging you down, but this is an easier issue to fix than you might think, with solutions including –
Have you ever seen a spa without a few plants dotted around? Probably not because, as well as providing undeniable tranquility, plants add a real sense of freshness to interior spaces. Not only that, but plants literally purify the air. 72% of people also report feeling generally happier with plants incorporated into their homes!
If you don’t have any plants at home, then your rooms are far more likely to feel flat. Instead, it’s worth trying to incorporate at least one carefully chosen plant across every room, and to care for it so that it thrives and keeps that space as fresh as possible.
Things to try:
Incorporating plants isn’t a difficult concept to get your head around, but things you might want to try to get the most of this option include –
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that you can paint your rooms once and never tackle this task again. In truth, experts recommend repainting interior walls at least every 5-10 years, with preferable touch-ups in between.
Nothing makes your rooms feel outdated and well-worn more than visible scuff marks or other damage on your walls. By comparison, transforming your home with a freshly painted room will ensure your rooms remain glowing, stylish, and welcoming for a long time to come.
Things to try:
If you think your paint needs a touch-up or a complete redo, then you’re probably right. Some things you can try to make this easier include –
Sometimes, your best efforts won’t help to make your home feel fresh again. If you’ve taken all of the steps on this list, and still feel like your home isn’t working for you, it may simply be that you’ve outgrown the space.
This is especially true if you’re constantly dealing with clutter that stops even freshly decorated rooms from feeling good. Or maybe you’ve just been in a space so long that you’ve stopped appreciating its unique features? In this instance, more extreme measures may be necessary to invigorate your love of home once more.
Things to try:
If your home isn’t fitting despite your best efforts, it’s time for last-ditch attempts to save the space in the following ways –
It isn’t always easy tackling stale rooms in your home, but it needn’t be difficult, either, with this list to hand.
Chinese artist Li Jiayue transforms and camouflages concrete columns, tree trunks, and other architectural objects with impressive skill.
By expertly mimicking the background of a scene, Jiayue gives the illusion that giant concrete columns are floating in midair, or have been transformed into something else.
The illusion only works when the viewer looks at something head-on, but even still, it’s a neat visual trick, and shows that painting can extend our reality, or in this case, suspend it.
Italian painter Marco Grassi paints with such remarkable detail, it’s literally down to the individual skin pore and facial hair. Some of them are so realistic it’s amazing they’re not photographs.
The hyperrealistic paintings do delve into the surrealistic, breaking the illusion that they’re purely photographic in nature. We see figures whose arms and legs erupt in colorful murals and animal figures.
Images © Copyright Marco Grassi.
“My goal is to stir deep emotions, trying to make people more sensitive. I want to combine reality and surrealism, exploring human thoughts and nature in a more personal way”
“I paint what my inner child craves: a hyper colorful and extra sugary world.”
Entitled Border Crossing, the paintings merge the worlds of animals and human politics, reflecting on the policies of child separation, borders, and immigration.
“I made Into the Dark in response to the horror of the policy of separating children from their parents at the U.S. border,” Ericson reveals. “Often when I work, I get lost in the technical aspects of painting—the color, seeing the image take shape brushstroke by brushstroke—but this subject matter was a little raw for me and I felt emotional about it all the way through.”
See more of Ericson’s work on her website and Instagram.
Ericson’s work merges themes of animal migration in the wild with human migration and the refugee crisis. – My Modern Met
Artist and photographer Tarryn Goldman has created a series of remarkable images, where painting and photography meet in a surreal and fascinating way.
Her work appears like an illusion, where the oil painting is actually made up of real-life figures, but made to look like it belongs on a traditional canvas. She uses an impasto technique, where layers of paint are built up to bring out depth and shadow.
We love the process of her figure’s transformation, and the way brush strokes can be accentuated to turn real objects into ones that look two dimensional. It’s a unique twist, the opposite of what is normally done, where artists meticulously paint something to look lifelike and hyperrealistic.
See more of her work on her website and Instagram.
Images used with artist’s permission.
Goldman’s Impasto Process:
“In early 2020 COVID pushed everyone in the world into their homes and told them to sit and stay there. I finished editing images which had been piling up, updated my website, tidied my studio and took an endless stream of images of my daughter.
After about two weeks, when I realised that COVID was gonna be around for a while I began looking for projects to do. I joined a number of online workshops and a few competitions and started to really get into the wonderful space of creativity where I had no deadlines, no boundaries and nothing else to shoot but what I absolutely loved creating.
I heard about this really cool competition called Africa Photo Awards and I decided to enter. After looking at the genres of the competition, I was torn between creating work to enter into the Fine Art category or the Conceptual category. I understood the literal difference between the two, but in my eyes, there was not very much difference when you looked at the actual images.
If you take a photograph of a fine art painting, would that be considered fine art photography or conceptual photography? I spent the next day or so painting objects and setting them up, but it was only once I looked through the camera did I realise what I had done…
It collapsed depth. It had created a 2D object from real life… No matter which angle I took the image from, the effect remained the same. In traditional art there is a technique that uses realistic imagery to create the optical illusion that the depicted objects exist in three dimensions called Trompe-l’oeil. What I am doing is the exact opposite.”
Below is a great video from the artist showing her painstaking process.
As the awful invasion of Ukraine goes on, many of us have felt helpless and frustrated. Aside from donating to organizations and volunteering, it’s been hard to watch the violence
We have been reading up on Ukrainian culture, and learning about their most well known artists, including Maria Prymachenko, who may be their most loved artist. We love how vibrant and full of personality the paintings are.
“Maria Prymachenko is one of Ukraine’s best-known artists. Known for her colorful, expressive, and “primitive” style, Prymachenko won a gold medal for her work at the 1937 World’s Fair in Paris and Pablo Picasso is said to have remarked “I bow down before the artistic miracle of this brilliant Ukrainian” after seeing her work. Prymachenko’s paintings featured animals (both real & fantastical), everyday Ukrainian people, food & agriculture, and themes of war & peace.”
Artist Timur Zagirov has created a beautiful rendition of Van Gogh’s famous self portrait, using a myriad of colored wooden blocks. 425 polished pine cubes, to be precise.
Viewed from a distance, the mosaic has an uncanny resemblance to the Dutch painter’s work.
Up close, the blocks become an indistinguishable wooden tapestry, colored in the various hues that makeup the painting. Really beautiful work, and totally unique from what we’ve seen. This one-of-a-kind piece recently sold on auction.
See more of Zagirov’s work on Instagram and the Saatchi artwork website.
Images used with artist’s permission.
So much can be communicated with just simple brush strokes, like these ‘portraits’ by artist and painter Eric Haacht, that are so fluid and interpretive to become abstract.
The use of vibrant color in the brush and palette strokes make for strangely captivating portraits, where you can nearly make out the features of the figures.
Visit his Instagram to see more of the fascinating paintings.
“My paintings are essentially about life and death, I think all forms of portraiture are really a way of confronting our own mortality, and leaving something of ourselves behind.”
— Eric Haacht
Elyse Dodge has a trademark geometric style, combining traditional landscapes with a myriad of geometric forms.
The contrasting forms play well off of one another, and her style appreciates the appeal of landscapes, while pushing them firmly into new and unique territory.
Some of the hand painted geometric mountains seem computer-created, almost like they haven’t finished rendering. Others appear like twinkling gems reflecting off of the water below.
Make sure to visit Dodge’s impressive portfolio and Instagram.
Artwork used with artist’s permission.
London based visual designer Luliya Martynova creates seascapes with a beautifully minimalist approach. Using rich turquoise hues in a splatter type formation, she creates visions of sailboats floating over perfect Caribbean seas. Delightfully simple and clean approach to painting.
See more on her website and Instagram.
Images used with artist’s permission.
