The Lardner Report – Page 12 – Unleash your creative superpowers!

When People Look Like Art

March 31, 2023 by Lonnie Lardner

The artist who shot and compiled all these photos changed the way I view art in museums, galleries, and on the street. Lorraine Triolo is a clever, super creative Los Angeles photographer, sculptor and conceptual artist who wrote the book “People Who Look Like Art.”

After seeing her work, I find myself taking in the entire environment of an art show — not just what’s on the wall. Triolo is a master of this kind of observation; she captures the consanguinity between the painting and the person in front of it. With the right match, museum-goers practically disappear into the art behind them. It’s a pretty magical experience. Check out her work below, and next time you visit a show, step back — way back.

For Lorraine’s full collection, check out her profile on Instagram: @peoplewholooklikeart

Banksy — Forever Stamped

February 28, 2023 by Lonnie Lardner

(Pic #1) A Banksy mural metaphorically slamming Putin and the Russian Federation

The work of mysterious British muralist “Banksy” now joins the virtual time capsule of images created by artists chronicling the war in Ukraine. The recent work by the iconic street artist is being immortalized by “Ukrposhta” — the Ukrainian National Post Office — as a 2023 postage stamp. The release marks the one-year anniversary of the Russian invasion.

The image depicted on the Banksy stamp is a photograph of a mural he painted in the city of Borodyanka. (Pic #1) “A little boy who knocks out a grown man is an allegorical image – this is the struggle of Ukraine against the Russian Federation,” the Ukrainian postal service said. In the picture, a young boy uses the art of Judo to flip the man, and it is well-known that Mr. Putin has passion for Martial Arts, and has reportedly earned a black belt. The illustration is accompanied by six Cyrillic letters that stand as a not-so-veiled shorthand for “Putin, go fuck yourself.”

(Pic #2) The grand flip-off by a Ukrainian soldier to a Russian Warship (Postage stamp)

George Orwell once quipped that “every joke is a tiny revolution.” Ukrainians are proof positive of this premise, as Ukrposhta has now printed more than 30 politically-charged images painted by Ukrainian artists. Many believe comedy — and irreverence — is the country’s way of coping with unfathomable trauma. One local comedian interviewed by Associated Press suggests simply that they are “using humor as a weapon to keep spirits up.”

On another stamp, (Pic #2) you see a Russian warship approaching a group of Ukrainian border guards on Snake Island in the Black Sea, ordering Ukraine’s surrender. The guards responded — while flipping the bird —“Hey, Russian warship, go fuck yourself.”

Are you seeing a pattern here?

When Tools Become Art

January 31, 2023 by Lonnie Lardner

(Pic #1) “Trapped Sole” spray can sculpture by Stinky Punk. Featured at Art Share L.A. in downtown Los Angeles.

A stunning Los Angeles exhibit celebrates a fresh way of looking at Spray

“Spray paint simplifies the creative process, acting as both a paintbrush and paint.” (Up Magazine)

It’s a tool that offers the sleek finishing touch we associate with graffiti. It’s super popular because it’s portable, versatile, and accessible. Since the 1960s — when modern graffiti emerged as a veritable art form on New York City subway trains — spray paint became an extension of a tagger’s imagination. Invented originally as an application for aluminum coating for radiators, it quickly became the mainstay of a new brand of inner-city art.

And now, a master of “the art of spray” — a graffiti artist who calls himself “Man One” — has transformed a ubiquitous “tool of the trade” into art itself. Man recently curated dozens of “can-formations” made by Los Angeles artists — into a collection that magically transforms utilitarian objects into fanciful works of beauty, surprise, and wit.