Charles Ray

Here's another hardcore American artist that I find not too many people know about. Associated at first with the performance and body/endurance crowd of the 70's, he soon after moved towards sculpture (what he actually studied) perhaps giving his own-body-as-the-medium a break. Here above is a good sampling of his work. See more here and read about him here.

From top to bottom: Unpainted Sculpture (1997); Oh! Charlie, Charlie, Charlie (1992); Plank Piece I & II (1973); Untitled (1973).

Melanie MacDonald

Above are works by St. Catharines (Ontario) based painter Melanie MacDonald. She paints—in beautiful vivid colour—some of the details of her everyday existence. These could be anything from a soft, out of focus close-up of a board game to a sink full of dishes. Sounds lame, but if done well, it's totally poetic and that's her level. Find her site here.

From top to bottom: Butter (2008); Blue Floral Pattern—Creamer (2007); Hand Painted Tea Pot (2006); Silverware (2005).

Work In Progress v7.1

Here's an update on the house I'm painting. What you see in these shots are the hallway joining all the room on the main floor, the stairs from the ground floor going up and the stairs going to the third floor.

The farmhouse-style details were really great to work with. It gave me the chance to pop out some elements and plains making the whole area look bigger. The dark grey also added to this effect, giving the hallway more depth. I return in a few weeks to finish up.

This is the second post on this project. Find the first post here.

Matthew Porter

Above, way above... are the photographs of Brooklyn-based artist Matthew Porter. Continue the adventure here and here. You could own one at a very reasonable price. Go here.

From top to bottom: The Heights (2006); Airborne (2005); Bayview (2006); Blue Ridge Parkway (2008).

À l'écoute

MC Solaar, Chapitre 7 (Sentinel Ouest)
This is the 7th album from the French rapper Claude M'Barali, aka MC Solaar. A great record as always, great writing and production. Tracks like In God We Trust and Non Merci show just how masterful Solaar is. Plenty to hear and see on his website.

Tortoise, Beacons of Ancestorship (Thrill Jockey Records)
This is the newest record from the Chicago (post-rock, post-jazz...) outfit. It's spiky, took a few listens to truly understand where they are going with this one. It's airy, yet heavy, and I'm on the bus. More here.

Tasha Aulls

Shown above are new paintings by Montreal-born, now London-based Tasha Aulls. She opens a show at the Sassoon Gallery in London on July 21st. More here.

From top to bottom: Tiger Light, Arctic Night (2009); Sun-Ray Rise Again (2009); Last Dance In Disco Valley (2009); Hinterlands, When We Go How We Go (2008).

Steven Laurie

Here's the work of Steven Laurie from Whitby (Ontario) Canada. A video of his performance at Station Gallery can be viewed here. Go here to read a piece on him by Gary Grant. Much more here from Hack A Day.

From top to bottom: Chainsaw (Mud Flap Project, 2009); Herman Kruis' Truck (Mud Flap Project, 2009); Burnout Machine (Still from a performance at Station Gallery, 2008); Donut Machine (2008).

Mathew Borrett

While looking for older music in my archives I came across a handful of drawings that Mathew had sent me a few years back to use for Love, Anna propaganda. Some of these date back to 2002. Find his site here. Read an interview with Borrett here and here.

Běla Kolářová

Shown here are works by Czech artist Běla Kolářová. More here (keep going through this website actually. The permanent collection of Eastern Europe's Erste Bank is excellent).

From top to bottom: Alphabet, 1964; (unknown, year unknown); Bristles (Hair Cycle series) 1964; Lesbos (Hair Cycle series) 1964.

David Scheinbaum

Here are photographs by American photographer David Scheinbaum. These were shown recently at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington (DC) as part of the exhibition Recognize! Hip Hop and Contemporary Portraiture. Go here for the full exhibit website. More of Scheinbaum's work can be found here.

From top to bottom: Erykah Badu, Sunshine Theater, Albuquerque, New Mexico (2003); ?uestlove, The Roots, Sunshine Theatre, Albuquerque, New Mexico (2003); Cut Chemist, Sunshine Theatre, Albuquerque, New Mexico (2000); Gift of Gab, Blackalicious, Sunshine Theatre, Albuquerque, New Mexico (2002).

Work In Progress v7.0

Here's a custom mural / wall piece I just finished for a private home in Toronto. I'm doing a few more rooms this week so will post those later.

Jude Tallichet

Shown above are works by the American artist Jude Tallichet. Read more here, see her fight off Ninja's here and read even more here.

From top to bottom: Visitors (2008); Dr. Freedman's Analytic Couch (2008); Save It For Me (2007); Bear Rug (2005).

Booleep In America

Nicole has been traveling these past few weeks in the eastern part of America. She left these behind.