Author: StyleCarrot

Marni Elyse Katz is a design writer and editor who lives in Boston and Cape Cod with her husband, two sons, and a cat. She blogs about design at www.stylecarrot.com

ARTmonday: Venice Biennale 2011


On our second day in Venice we took a guided tour of the Biennale. While I’ve visited Venice before, I’d never been to the art exhibit; needless to say I was thrilled. La Biennale takes place in Venice every two years (hence the name). Foscarini, which is a sponsor of the festival, hosted us on a stroll through some of the 30 permanent national pavilions in the city’s Giardini (public gardens) as well as a guided tour of the “ILLUMInations” exhibit in the Venetian Arsenal. Below are the highlights from the Arsenale, which features 83 artists from around the world. Here’s a glimpse of what I saw:

Song Dong (Born and works in China)

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Andro Wekua (Born in Georgia; works in Switzerland and Germany)

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Franz West (Born and works in Austria)

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Rashid Johnson (Born and works in USA)

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unidentified

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unidentified

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Josh Smith

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unidentified

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Nicholoas Hlobo (Born and works in South Africa)

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Ryan Gander

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Ida Ekblad (Born and works in Norway)

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Annette Kelm (Born and works in Germany)

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Klara Liden (Born in Sweden; works in Germany)

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Luca Francesconi (Born in Italy; works in Italy and France)

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Guilia Piscitelli (Born and works in Italy)

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Elad Lassry (Born in Israel; works in USA)

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Corinne Wasmuht (Born and works in Germany)

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Jean Luc Mylayne (Born in France; works globally)

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Birdhead (Born and work in China)

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Urs Fischer (Born in Switzerland; works in USA)

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Navid Nuur (Born in Iran; works in Holland)

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Anya Titova (Born and works in Russia)

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Rebecca Warren

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Monica Bonvincini Born in Italy; works in Germany)

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Ida Ekblad (Born and works in Norway)

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Fabian Marti (Born and works in Switzerland)

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Ida Ekblad (Born and works in Norway)

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“Good Design” at Foscarini

This fall I started contributing to Design Milk, a refreshingly sleek and focused contemporary design blog founded and run by Jaime Derringer. Lighting company Foscarini invited us to Venice, and since Jaime was about to have a baby, I got to go. It was an amazing trip. Foscarini hosted a handful of bloggers from design sites all over Europe at its corporate offices for a day of discovery and discussion. At the end, they put together this video in which we all put forth the single most important aspect of “good design.” Watch us speak.

The words we chose . . .

“PROCESS” Luca Nichetto, designer (Venice)
“SINCERITY”  Ionna Vautrin, designer (Paris)
“LOVE”  Vicente Garcia Jimenez, designer (Udine, Italy)
VITALITY” Marni Katz, Design Milk (Boston)
“FORM” Jenny Filipetti, Design Boom (Milan)
“EMOTION” Micle Mihai Cristian, Freshome (Romania)
“TEAMWORK”  Costas Voyatzis, Yatzer (Athens, Greece)
“SINGULARITY”  Eric Foulon, Muuuz (Paris)
“TECHNOLOGY”  Philipp Thom, Studio 5555 (Germany)
“RESEARCH” Giuilia Zappa, Designer Blog (Milan)

Fine Print: Oberto Gilli Home Sweet Home

Although it’s not even Thanksgiving yet, stores are fervently blasting Christmas tunes to get shoppers in the mood. I prefer to do my shopping online, with my sound shut off.  Between intrusive tunes and the disappearance of brick and mortar bookstores, I thought it would be helpful to start featuring the best design-related coffee table books that have been published recently. While I’m anti-paper in most aspects of my life, I still adore a glossy book. This one makes a beautiful holiday gift.

Oberto Gill: Home Sweet Home, Rizzoli, October 2011

Oberto Gill: Home Sweet Home showcases “sumptuous and bohemian interiors” shot by Oberto Gilli throughout his career. (His work has appeared in House & Garden, Town & Country, Vogue.) There are photos of more than 40 homes shown in full, from New York City penthouses and artist lofts to seventeenth-century Italian villas and country homes in Morocco. Here is a sampling:

Decorator Muriel Brandolini’s first apartment in New York, 1992

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Oberto Gili’s home in Piedmont, Italy, 2010

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Oberto Gili’s home in Piedmont, Italy, 2010

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Artist and photographer Andres Serrano, New York City, 2000

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Artist Ellsworth Kelly’s studio in Spencertown, New York, 1996

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Vineyard owners Laura di Collobiano & Moreno Petrini’s 16th century abode in Tuscany, 2007

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Oberto Gili’s home in Piedmont, Italy, 2010

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Paola Igliori (poet, photographer, writer, filmmaker), Villa Lina, Lazio, Italy, 2008

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Oberto Gili’s home in Piedmont, Italy, 2010

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Landscape architect Paolo Pejrone’s home in Italy, 2010

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Artist Anish Kapoor’s house, Notting HIll Gate, London, 1998

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Gallery owner John Cheim’s loft in New York City, 1989

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Oberto Gili’s home in Piedmont, Italy, 2010

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Isabella Rosselini’s barn in Bellport, Long Island, 2010

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Oberto Gili’s studio in Piedmont, Italy, 2010

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For more about the man, I recommend New York Social Diary’s fantastic tour of Gilli’s brownstone in the West Village.

Covet: Recycled Wood Necklace by Treehorn

Recycled wood necklace by Treehorn Designs

Such a simple idea, yet really appealing, Australian label Treehorn Designs takes old pieces of wood, adds color blocking, drills a whole, and strings them up on a chain. It’s very architectural, but rough and crafty too.
Available at Moose, $33 AUD (basically the same amount US)

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