Hasta La Ideas

Daniel MacDonald breaks into the art world with otherworldly lights

Self-proclaimed computer nerd Daniel MacDonald marks his foray into the art world with Shio (or “shio” as MacDonald prefers it visually for balance), a series of glowing, orb-like sculptures covered in intricate fractal patterns of crystalized sodium. Each piece a link back to MacDonald’s childhood visits to Yellowstone, shio—the Japanese word for salt—grow gradually in his studio as salt water flows over structural skeletons made from fabric and translucent plastic. As the salt begins to stick to each frame, tiny nodules form and build upon each other until miniature stalagmites cover the shio in an infinite array of shapes, sizes and combinations—a process that takes around a week to complete. The resulting sculptures are striking and otherworldly, characteristics magnified by the colored LED lights that illuminate them from the inside out.

MacDonald’s artistic process is at once innovative and ancient. Sculptures similar to shio have been formed by the hands of nature for millennia in the proximity of hot springs and geysers, and no one is stranger to the miraculous structures that come to life deep underground in caves. What’s rare is an artist who strives to mimic the forces of nature in a way that’s efficient and original, especially where high-pressure mineral formations are concerned, but MacDonald messed around with sodium chloride for weeks until he could produce objects that were startlingly beautiful.

He describes that process with integrity and humility, betraying both his passion for the project and his unassuming attitude towards the art world and its larger cultural significance. “I don’t feel that shio as art is really about commentary,” says MacDonald. “Its simpler and more pure than that. It is a product of a highly specific, but simple, ethos. Shio is fundamentally about optimism and enthusiasm for the unknown and unexplored, and that is what I want it to bring to people’s lives.”

As for his transition from software designer to artist, MacDonald recounts, “I developed the technique and the process for several months before I finally admitted to myself that what I was doing was what other people call art or design. I remember literally having this identity crisis where I had to come to grips with the fact that I was producing beautiful things, directly from my own aesthetic design sense, with few constraints other than my own taste.” But as his sense of beauty grew out of years spent designing software, that aesthetic was neither culturally nuanced nor highly developed. Instead, his fresh outlook allowed him to translate raw software instincts to the physical realm like letting a “really complicated control system run open-loop.” The feeling, he says, “was awesome.”

Now its time for Shio to officially enter the art world with increased production and a more streamlined manufacturing process. MacDonald created a Kickstarter project page to help his dream become a full-blown reality, one in which he can be free to experiment with different growing techniques in his “nursery” and explore the effects of coloring the sodium mixture. As for future aspirations, he hopes to one day create huge glowing tentacled chandeliers or even 8-foot-high spiny, gourd-like sculptures. To check out the different Shio species and mutants, visit MacDonald’s website.

To celebrate 50 years of the Lego brick in Australia, the toy brand has launched the Lego Festival of Play, and has been ‘planting’ lifesize Lego forests across Australia. The latest sprang up earlier this week in the remote outback town of Broken Hill….

The forest is planted in the Living Desert nature reserve, and features a giant version of the Lego pine trees and flowers set, with the flora here standing at 66 times the size of the original Lego pieces.

The Broken Hill forest follows an earlier Lego forest that was planted in Martin Place in Sydney over a rainy few days in April (see image below).

The Broken Hill forest will be on display until July 12, and Lego is planning further unexpected plantings in Australia over the course of the year. Visit legofestival.com.au for more information.

Creative digs in a city where East meets West

Over the past decade Istanbul has made aggressive headway in the contemporary culture arena. With the opening of the
Istanbul Modern and innovative galleries like
Arter and Galerist, the city offers a rich spectrum of art and exploration. A new generation of filmmakers, fashion designers, musicians and artists are proudly claiming the city home, and now, the newly opened Le Méridien hotel in the chic Etiler neighborhood offers creative-minded visitors a place in the center of it all for a first-class Istanbul experience.

The 34-story building takes on the shape of stacked cubes, towering over the nearby Bosphorus building. Designed by Turkish architect Emre Arolat, the hotel features 259 comfortable guest rooms and 21 long-stay suites with floor-to-ceiling windows. Set at the point where east meets west, the building gets gradually transparent as it rises, providing mesmerizing views of both Europe and Asia.

Le Méridien’s cultural curator, Jerome Sans (of Palais de Tokyo fame) helped lay the groundwork for building a hotel for the creative class in Istanbul. In addition to the city housing a new wave of artistic creation, Istanbul also has a nightlife to rival any major center. “It’s a city that almost invented the rooftop bar,” says Sans.

In keeping with the Le Méridien ethos, the Istanbul Etiler aims to provide guests with new experiences to enrich their minds if they so choose. The Unlock Art program features an artist-designed key card that opens not only your room, but also provides complimentary entry into cultural monuments in the city, including the Istanbul Modern. Sans chose :mentalKLINIK, an Istanbul duo who focus their art on modern habits and consumption, to design the first set of key cards for the hotel. The duo also designed an Illy set specifically for the hotel, a gold-adorned espresso cup and saucer that can be twisted and turned to form a variety of design combinations.

The interior design draws upon themes of cartography and Turkish heritage—the custom-made lobby rug weaves an interpretation of the Bosphorus, while the concierge desk reflects the lines of the Gallatin bridge. Another floor carpet maps out a grid of Istanbul, and lines running throughout the Latitude Bar bring to mind longitude and latitude. The coffee parlor features basket chairs, situated to encourage conversation among strangers and tables modeled after the shape of Turkish tea cups. The furniture throughout the hotel features mid-century modern pieces done in simple textiles.

At night the Latitude Bar turns into a boozy haven, welcoming in guests after a day of city exploration. The Boaz Bar, located on the 34th floor offers a 360° view of the Bosphorus. It has quickly become a sought-out destination on Istanbul’s nightlife circuit.

Thankfully the expansive Explore Spa helps guest regenerate the next day. With a mix of classic European treatments and a Hamman, the Explore Spa offers signature treatments like a hot grape seed oil massage and a traditional Turkish bath on a heated marble bed. An open relaxation room encourages guests to meet and mingle after a dip in one of the indoor or outdoor pools.

Rooms at Le Méridien Istanbul Etiler start at 250€ per night.

Le Méridien Istanbul Etiler
Cengiz Topel Caddesi No. 39, 34337
Etiler, Istanbul, Turkey

Fred Deakin has collaborated with fellow ex-Airside co-director Nat Hunter, programmer and animator Marek Bereza, and music producer James Bulley to create an interactive audio-visual installation for the Joue Le Jeu (Play Along) exhibition currently running at France’s national digital museum, La Gaîté Lyrique in Paris.

The installation, entitled Electricity Comes From Other Planets, is in the gallery’s 21 metre wide Mur Mezzanine space and consists of eight large “planets” that react to people’s movement within the space, generating both music and projected animations using a combination of generative programming, Kinnect sensors and projection mapping.

This film explains how the project came about and shows it being explored by visitors to the exhibition:

Electricity Comes From Other Planets is the first creative project to be attributed to Deakin’s new company Fred & Company which also created the branding (example shown, below) and publicity for the entire Joue Le Jeu exhibition.

Joue le Jeu runs until August 12 at La Gaîté Lyrique, 3 bis rue Papin, 75003 Paris, France.

gaite-lyrique.net

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Cindy Sherman’s Untitled #119 (1983)

The cultural triple threat that is the National Academy (the New York-based museum, art school, and honorary association of artists and architects founded in 1825) today announced its newest members, who will gain the fancy title of “Academician” and join a group that ranges from Albert Bierstadt and Frederic Church to Robert Rauschenberg and Rafael Viñoly. This year marks the first time that artists working in video, photography, and installation were elgible for nomination—Academicians voted last year to revise the traditional categories of membership that included “Painting, Sculpture, Printmaking, and Architecture” to “Visual Arts and Architecture”—a change reflected in this mixed-media-loving group of newly elected visual artists: Siah Armajani, Richard Artschwager, David Diao, Robert Gober, Robert Irwin, Shirley Jaffe, Joan Jonas, Bruce Nauman, Peter Saul, Joel Shapiro, Cindy Sherman, Richard Tuttle, Bill Viola, and Ursula von Rydingsvard. From the world of architecture, the Academy will welcome Stan Allen, Wendy Evans Joseph, M. Paul Friedberg, Jeanne Gang, Michael Graves, Steven Holl, Gregg Pasquarelli, Annabelle Selldorf, and Bernard Tschumi. “This new group includes great artists and architects who should long ago have been Academicians, plus a whole new generation,” said architect Tod Williams, a member since 2010, in a statement issued today by the organization. The 23 new members will be inducted this fall in a ceremony led by Robert Hobbs of Virginia Commonwealth University.

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