Crimson Kaie

Polina Marinova - Sofia, Bulgaria Taking photographs of people...

Sat, 24 Mar 2012 20:29:33 +0200

Polina Marinova - Sofia, Bulgaria

Taking photographs of people comes naturally for me as I’ve travelled a lot and have felt the need to document the people I meеt. In this way I feel they become a part of my life even if some of them never realised they were being photographed.

I enjoy taking spontaneous street photos that catch the moment and the emotion. The challenge is to press the button and save something for a one thousandth of a second that shows not only the face and clothes, but also the soul. I don`t think what I`m doing is art. I just document people as I see them.

Gizem Saka - Wellesley, Mass. United States Artist born and...

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 11:15:46 +0200

Reading on the shoulders of a big man

Kismet

Moonlit Dinner

Gizem Saka - Wellesley, Mass. United States

Artist born and raised in Istanbul, Turkey, who currently paints in Wellesley, Massachusetts.

http://www.istanbulgallery.com/

Ciril Stoev - Sofia, Bulgaria I was born in Bulgaria in a...

Sun, 23 Oct 2011 18:19:00 +0300

Ciril Stoev - Sofia, Bulgaria

I was born in Bulgaria in a quiet, middle class family with very kind and understanding parents. They are really supportive and encourage me and help me in every possible way.

I work in different mediums - painting, photography, fashion design, costume, but there are always some permanent sources of inspiration. These are other forms of art, like cinema, music and literature. About the latter, I am considerably influenced by William Shakespeare’s work, the tragedies in particular. I read “Macbeth” for first time when I was twelve years old and there are several scenes that are etched in my consciousness.

But the above would have been of little consequence for an artist if his or her creativity didn’t lay on personal experiences on both physical and emotional level. Fortunately, that is not my case. Everything I do, regarding painting especially, is profoundly intimate.

Boyan - It’s been such a long time since we’ve had a post on CrimsonKaie. I’m very happy to be [hopefully] restarting our features with Ciril’s deeply emotional work.

Ian Jackson (Tiny Scum) - Melbourne, Australia Boyan - Ian is...

Mon, 16 May 2011 17:29:11 +0300

Ian Jackson (Tiny Scum) - Melbourne, Australia

Boyan - Ian is a good friend, even-though I’ve not seen him for eight years. I wanted to show something different to the usual visual art on Crimson Kaie so I invited Ian to talk about his music. I’ll leave it to him. Be sure to check out the link below for all of the music.

Ian - I guess these songs were written over the last decade as a sort of therapy, or self expression if you like. Until recently they have been instrumental guitar tracks with the hope in finding other artists to collaborate with and finish them that way.

Unfortunately I was never able to find people who wanted to collaborate on these tunes so I thought “f*ck it” and decided to create drum patterns to the songs on my computer as well as laying down vocals. The vocals were very difficult for me because I struggled to write lyrics to the tunes that I have completed. Words are also more personal to me than music and that’s very difficult for me to come to terms with because I think of myself as being a very private person and generally don’t like to let people in on my thoughts and feelings. It’s also very strange listening to myself on the recording and is something that I am struggling to come to terms with.

Another hurdle in producing these tracks is that I’ve always aspired to artists such as Bryan Adams, INXS, Bon JOVI. It took a long time to realise that I’m not these artists, I like their music a lot but I have to come to terms with who I am and that I cannot change that. I’ve always liked the idea of fun, uplifting, pop/ rock tunes.

When I was younger, I listened to a lot of angry and depressing music. I’m glad I outgrew this because music has a huge influence on a person’s mood and state of mind; I feel good when listening to happier tunes. Saying this I also think music can sometimes reflect the hardships of a person’s life, but in a way that gives a positive outlook to the situation and gives people in the same sort of situation comfort and hope.

That’s basically what the blues is, I think, and it is definitely a huge influence on my playing. The Doors, Jim Morrison in particular, had this element a lot in their music. You get a sense of the darkness of Jim in his music but it’s always in a way that gives you hope and comfort.

The songs I have written are about various things-

Ride is about life in general, about being free but the loneliness that this brings in today’s society. It’s about the opportunity for your life to be a wild ride and you should live it on your own terms. It also has sexual connotations that I hoped girls would pick up on. I’m pretty sure I came up with those words while I was riding my bicycle passed some hot girl who I incidentally wanted to ride, get it?

Dancing in Limbo is a reflection of my life at the moment. I’m sort of in a passing time waiting for the stars to align I guess. Limbo being a timeless place neither here nor there.

Loving You is about falling in love with the wrong person and the way it breaks your heart to reject a person you know isn’t right. It’s not about being in love with an underage person, but does refer to the person in question having a mind set of a child.

Merry Go Round well you could say this is an anti-religion statement of some sorts. That these beliefs are just people going around in circles. They also refer to the way some people in society just live their life going in the same old circles, kind of like my sister in a lot of ways. Also the way that society is becoming more and more power hungry and greedy, which I think is just human nature and the disgraceful way that humans just grow and invade- like viruses.

See his Facebook page for all of the songs

Matt Prior - Wetherby, United Kingdom

Sat, 16 Apr 2011 17:31:00 +0300

REVISIT | Anna Popovich - London, England

Thu, 03 Mar 2011 10:19:00 +0200

Boyan - I featured Anna a little under a year ago and we saw a great response to the interview we did. I thought it would be interesting to revisit her and see how things had developed since we talked. The piece below gave me the idea to revisit some of the other artists we’ve featured to see how they’ve gotten on since - so look forward to more of these.
Anna - First and foremost I had the collection shown in the last interview re photographed! I cringe when I look at the original images! I wondered why I wasn’t selling anything then as soon as I listed the new photos my views on Etsy increased rapidly and I made my first sale within just a couple of hours.
I took my Spring/Summer Collection to a few craft fairs in London and was pleased to make several sales. I’d gone with the primary motive of increasing my brands exposure and networking with other designer-makers, thinking that my garments would be to expensive for craft fair goers to order and buy on the day, but I was pleased to make several sales. It was a great way to meet other people in the industry and get my designs out in the open! I certainly got a lot of attention from bloggers though going to events like this and was pleased to be featured on the Etsy blog.
Since my last interview I produced my Autumn/Winter collection-all dresses this time and all 100% silk, as I found these to be the most popular from my previous collection. My next, and very large step, is to try and sell my collections through other shops because although I’ve made several sales through Etsy, and it’s been a great way of starting off my fashion label, it just isn’t the right market for clothing at my price points. So my Autumn/Winter 11/12 collection is nearing completion (that’s the season buyers for boutiques and department stores are looking at now) and I’ve started designing my Spring/Summer 12 collection… While all that’s underway I’ve launched a new label, The Market London. Every day on my way to my studio I pass through a market selling the most amazing printed and embroidered fabrics, and this new label is the perfect excuse to use them. The Market London is a collection of striking but easy to wear women’s clothing featuring these vibrant fabrics. Each fabric comes in a limited supply so all pieces are limited edition or even one off.

See Anna’s new shop: The Market London
Also: Anna Popovich
And finally:twitter.com/annapopovich

Boyan S. Benev - Sofia, Bulgaria & London, UK

Fri, 04 Feb 2011 19:24:00 +0200

Staring at the sun, A lampost… & Barbed wire fence

Boyan - It was surely bound to happen.. at post 168 I thought I’d take some of my own medicine and submit a few photographs to the site. Hope you enjoy. These are from a hobby project of mine called ‘Beauty and the bloc’. The idea behind it is to try and show the beauty to be found in unlikely places. I now live in Sofia and everywhere I go I see something I’d never see in London. I see beauty in that and hopefully I can convey some of that to you all.

See more of my work: Beauty and the bloc

Ignacio Alperin Bruvera - Buenos Aires, Argentina

Fri, 19 Nov 2010 09:06:00 +0200

A Selection of Works

Ignacio was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He comes from a white collar middle class family with a varied background. At 11 years of age he had the opportunity to visit the Louvre, the Prado, the Vatican and Rome, and the major Museums of London, with all their historical and artistic treasures.That visit had a major influence on his life.

Upon his return to Buenos Aires, and with the help of his mother, a talented artist who decided to give up an artistic career to raise a family, he took his first steps in the world of art.

During his early 20’s he develops a love affair with jazz, his painting begins to show this influence. Complex rhythms, intertwining melodies, and a great deal of improvisational skill are developed in his art.

Boyan - I love the jazz-fuelled chaos in this work! All of Ignacio’s work is packed with energy, it’s such a pleasure to view. It’s the kind of work you need to see in full size to really feel it. Enjoy.

See more of his work: Ignacio Alperin Bruvera
Follow him on Twitter: twitter.com/ignacioalperin

Taj Melendez - Brooklyn, NY. United States

Wed, 13 Oct 2010 11:28:00 +0300

photographer: J. SHOTTI (www.jshotti.com)

Taj is currently 18 years old and has managed to garner international notoriety within just one year with his unique accessories. From Japan to Australia and back to the US, everyone wants a piece of the BY TAJ COLLECTION.

From celebrities and their stylists, Taj Melendez is turning heads. We are proud of him and wanted to share with you his work. He was recently written up in American Dreaming Magazine as well as he was interviewed by The Black-Nouveau, Vashtie & OWN Magazine to name a few.

Boyan - I’m not surprised Taj has had such a great year. Just in his emails you can tell the great energy he has. Combine that with a unique collection and what do you get?…

See more of his work: Taj Melendez

Ekaterina Petrova - Sofia, Bulgaria

Mon, 06 Sep 2010 14:18:00 +0300

A Selection from ‘The ground beneath my feet’

In her blog, The ground beneath my feet, Ekaterina Petrova combines her love for traveling and her interest in history, art and languages with her desire to become a better story-teller and photographer. Through taking photos of her feet standing on interesting surfaces in places and/or with people she wants to remember, and writing stories about them, she tries to literally retrace her steps and creates a kind of personal topographic map.

After living in Kuwait, St.Paul/Minneapolis, Berlin, New York and London, Ekaterina is now based in Sofia. When she’s not documenting the ground beneath her feet, she works as a journalist and editor at the on-line magazine BalkanTravellers.com and an occasional freelance contributor to other media.

Boyan - It has, yet again, been a long time since the last update so I thought we’d start with a funky little project. I like Ekaterina’s idea, while the concept isn’t unique it comes alive when combined with her interesting story and is, in any case, a fun perspective. Check out the full story below.

See more of her work: Ekaterina Petrova

DrFranken (Fran Rodrìguez Learte) - Madrid, Spain

Wed, 09 Jun 2010 14:21:00 +0300

Krowd, The Runner & The Face

Fran Rodrìguez Learte, “drfranken” was born in La Coruna, Spain in 1979. He graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Salamanca in 1998. drfranken lives and works in Madrid, Spain. For many years he experimented with different techniques and mediums. Now he concentrates on digital art and his work as a computer programmer in engineering.

Boyan - I enjoy the work because it has a great fantasy feel. It blends with its background and creates a general feeling of calm and mysticism. Check out the wide range of work at the website below.

See more of his work: DrFranken

INTERVIEW | Anna Popovich

Thu, 06 May 2010 11:19:00 +0300

Boyan - Using CrimsonKaie, I like to experiment with different perceptions of art. It’s no great leap to see fashion and clothing a an art form. As one of the closest, most personal things to us I find the drive and influence of the designers very interesting. So it’s a great pleasure to introduce Anna and her fantastic work. Be sure to see her full collection from the link below.

Describe your work & style?
The style of my work is heavily influenced by the couture houses which flourished around the turn of the 19th century-Lanvin, Worth and Poiret in particular. The things that inspire my designs vary from collection to collection but I always try to put their focus on luxury, detail and drama at the heart of the way I approach design.
My current collection began with an article in Fashion Theory called ‘Showing and Hiding’ which led me to experiment with drawing attention to particular areas of the body, not by revealing them but by sculpting over them with fabric and playing with proportions. My research led me to consider the different types of skin we create for ourselves and the ways in which we have distorted our body shapes through the ages.You will find nods to corsetry, exaggerated silhouettes (based on the Hollywood ideals of the 1940s and 50s, and Tudor costume) interpretations of human muscle structure and bias cutting to softly hint at the real body beneath.

Describe yourself
I have been fascinated by dissecting, altering and making clothes for as long as I can remember. It wasn’t until I was studying for my degree in Comparative Literature, however, that it occurred to me to turn this passion into a career.
While at university I joined the drama society and began to design and make costumes for their productions. In 2008 I began an internship with Roksanda Ilincic and I have since been a convert to fashion.

Where is the ‘art’ in your work? (excellently worded question, I know)

I have often been asked the question ‘is fashion art?’ Fashion is, quite simply, fashion. This does not make it any greater or lesser than art. Fashion fascinates me because it touches all aspects of our lives and is part of what makes us human. Not just the desire to protect our bodies from the elements but the desire to adorn our bodies-even the most primitive of societies have decorated their bodies in one way or another. However much a person claims not to follow or care about fashion they are interacting with it every day.

What has been your favourite moment doing what you do so far?

Taking my collection to my friends shop in Notting Hill to take some pictures for her blog. As well as positive comments from her customers, a photographer came in and asked to borrow some pieces for a shoot he was doing.

And your worst?
I’ve not had any huge disasters yet…

What’s your ambition?

I’m selling my collection made to order online at the moment but I’d love to start selling my designs ready-to-wear through established boutiques and department stores. If I could see one of my collections hanging on a rail in Liberty I’d really feel like I’d made it.

See her full collection here: Anna Popovich

Karina Yarv - Saint Petersburg, Russia

Mon, 03 May 2010 16:57:00 +0300

I Miss You Lee McQueen, Anna & Nice To Meet You Mr. Fry

‘I can’t explain myself, I’m afraid, Sir, because I’m not myself you see’.

What wonderfully right words!

The best way to feel myself happy and calm after a hard day is to draw something, some new character for my own little world.

I love portraits. They are my passion. I Love to draw them and think one of the best ways to feel something about a person is to draw their portrait. These are the people I admire and they always inspire me.

Boyan - Like her biography, I like the work because it is wonderfully chaotic and mixed. If I must admit, I did consider whether to post it for a while but I do enjoy the contrasts, the clarity and fun feel of each piece. Karina has a great selection of work on her site so do check it out, it fills out the picture - so to say.

See more of her work: Karina Yarv

INTERVIEW | Vera Gotseva

Mon, 19 Apr 2010 11:43:00 +0300

Boyan - As we’ve been a little sparse recently, I wanted to go all out with a feature interview and we couldn’t have chosen a better person for it. Vera has a love and passion for her work which shows not only in her images but her words… below. Enjoy!

Tell us a little about yourself?
I was educated to be a philosopher and a critic; however I work as a journalist and writer. Photography is my passion. I wouldn’t mind if photography turned into my profession as well. On a personal level, I like to think I am a positive person and my friends seem to think so, too, which makes me happy.

A little about your work?
I shoot with film cameras, which are either low-technology toy cameras, or vintage ones, such as Lomo LC-A, Diana, Smena, etc. – Russian cameras from the 50s which acquired quite some popularity in the past few years, or also vintage pro cameras such as Canon, Yashica, and others. Of course, analogue cameras take a little time and patience getting used to, so one can get the best out of them. It also should be mentioned that very often film cameras, especially the low-technology toy ones, differ from each other, even if they are the same model. Recently a friend of mine asked me how to use his Lomo LC-A and I explained to him that despite the fact that both are cameras were made at the same place in the same year, there’s no way for them to be exactly the same. Each of those cameras is unique and has its very own personality which you need to get to know and learn how to get the best out of. So sure, it takes time and patience, but the results you get are so unassumingly beautiful; there’s no way a digital camera can get you such depth and beauty.

Why you do what you do?

Once I started shooting with film I just couldn’t stop. I realised that I look at life around me mostly through the lens. We live in a digital world where everything is universalised and…well, digital. What attracts me in photography is the analogue in every sense – the manual settings, the lack of automatics, the responsibility, and the decisions you need to make in order to get a good image. Taking photographs is a great chance to see the world in a different way which can never be recreated. The beauty of it all is so strong that it overwhelms me, makes me think, or just makes me smile. In a nutshell – I take photographs because it makes me happy.

If you didn’t do what you do, what would you do?

Photography, very much like writing, is a solitary activity. Even when you share your work with others, what you show them is a replica of a moment which you experienced while being alone – you saw something alone and you shot it; you felt something alone and you wrote about it. And still, sharing remains a highly important thing for me and my work. This is why if I had to do something else that isn’t writing or photography I’d probably be doing something which doesn’t remain only in me and for me. For a while now I’ve been thinking of taking part in a volunteer program in a third world country, however I haven’t yet figured out what it is exactly that I can contribute in that field, so I haven’t done it yet. I haven’t given up on this idea and my desire to do something really valuable and important.

Your best experience so far?
I won’t forget the moment when I was hiking with a couple of friends. It was a very cold January afternoon and the few scant rays of light were falling slant. Then I took out my Lomo and I asked my friend to turn around and look at me. She did so, and that was when I knew that this is just the photograph I wanted. The truth is that when one takes photographs and then shares them with people it’s always a different experience for the photographer and for the audience, so to speak. But people always know when a photograph is touching and when it’s not. Sometimes things get left out of the frame – like the smile of the person who was beside me while I was taking a certain photograph, or a memory or a certain thought that I brought into a certain frame. I totally believe that the best shot is yet to come.

Your worst/most difficult moment so far?

The worst moment is when I find out that I ran out of film and I want to take more photographs! I’ve missed quite some great frames I’d have liked to capture. But I console myself thinking that these sights will forever stay framed in my heart.

In an ideal world…
In an ideal world I wouldn’t be any different from what I am now. Perhaps the one thing I’d want is to never run out of film. I do believe that my wish to reach more people with my photographs and to make an exhibition with prints is absolutely possible in our world as it is now, whether ideal or not...

See more of her work here: Vera Gotseva

Daria Hlazatova - Chernivtsi, Ukraine

Mon, 05 Apr 2010 15:20:00 +0300

Ladies, Elecat & JellyWatch

I’m 24 and live in a small town in Ukraine. I’ve been drawing since I was little but never had art training. As a child I loved to draw to my favourite music like the Beatles or Mozart and I guess it later has grown into my love for illustrating. Now I find inspiration in books and theatre. I love travelling and I’ve had several opportunities to get exposure of my work in the US and the UK.

My illustrations are in some way or other connected with fairy-tales, animals and literary characters. I hope you’ll enjoy these three drawings which were inspired by the stories of Susanna Clarke and Robert Louis Stevenson.

Boyan - I’m happy to break such a prolonged break with these wonderful illustrations. I love the stretched and skewed style of Daria’s illustrations. The abstract elegance is a great complement to the intriguing subject matter. Great work, keep it up.

See more of her work: Daria Hlazatova

Our New Editor: John Egan

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 19:47:00 +0200

Boyan - When I look back, Crimson Kaie has actually been around a lot less than it feels like it has! I take that to be a good thing because it has been a pleasure featuring the over 175 artists we have featured thus far. Now Crimson Kaie draws a regular audience from around the world and it’s great to see a place where emerging and unknown artists in all media can have a chance to show off their talents.

I’ve wanted to dedicate more time to the project but my life is hectic to say the least and so for some time I had been toying with the idea to find some outside talent to take on an editorial position on the site.

Of course, it’s one thing to have an idea and a totally different thing to realise it.

So a few weeks ago I thought I would try an alternative approach and posted a note of the Facebook Marketplace announcing we were looking for an editor. There were actually five contacts as a result which was a surprise in itself. But skeptical of the quality of those responses I was more surprised to see that John seemed to fit the bill for what I was looking for dead on.

Now, with two great posts under his belt I wanted to just use this note as an opportunity to confirm his position as the editor of Crimson Kaie. I really hope we can work together to develop the site and what it continues to do best: show great new art by some fantastic people in often weird and wonderful places.

BOYAN

Teri Dryden - Los Angeles, United States

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 15:21:00 +0200

Teri - “My love of experimenting with different types of media has led me to the wonderful world of collage. Through this uniquely versatile medium, I have been able to explore a more personal and intuitive process in which I can express myself more freely, openly and honestly. I start by painting a canvas black, then layer pieces of assorted textured paper in various neutral shades. Driven by instinct and the thrill of discovery, I pick and pull, rip and tear—sometimes whole sections, sometimes mere slivers—exploring, exposing, revealing, and creating a topography upon which I begin to build. Recently I have become interested in the idea of orienteering (finding one’s way with navigating tools) as a metaphor for discovering my own emotional and psychological path. I allow my memories, experience and knowledge to arrange paper and paint into a map of where I’ve been, where I am, and where I might go. My inner compass guides me toward self-awareness, with frequent detours into fascinating unknown territories on the journey Dante calls ‘our life’s way’.”

John - Instantly, I found Teri’s usage of the word “topography” very interesting, due to the fact that, upon initial inspection, her work reminded me immediately of maps. This is a concept which is, arguably, quite passé, considering the fact that a number of artists working in the late 80s until the mid 90s (Kathy Prendergast’s ‘City Drawings’ being a prime example) seemed to simultaneously develop a fixation with the external mapping of the internal operations of the mind (possibly resultant from a revitalised interest in Freudian psychoanalysis). However, I found Teri’s work unlike examples of collage I’d been familiar with in the past. She maintains an allegiance to a palette which evokes the most arid of landscapes, as if seen from great heights, and the effect of viewing the work (for me, at least) is akin to being privy to a sort of vast despair. Not an overwhelmingly uplifting assessment, but a powerful and thought provoking one, the affects of which will, I hazard, outlast those elicited by the work of a lot of contemporary artists who are concerned more with sensationalism in the short term than with the production of meaningful work which has the capacity to transcend.

Teri can be contacted at:

818-640-3084 or tbomb1957@yahoo.com

All images copyright of Teri Dryden.

Brett Svetlik - Boston, United States

Mon, 18 Jan 2010 11:36:00 +0200

Fridge, Huckleberry Pie & Deer

After growing up on the Rocky Mountain Front in Colorado, Brett Svetlik relocated to Missoula to pursue his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at The University of Montana. Four years of academics and studio practice led him towards his BFA Degree, which he received in the spring of 2007. Svetlik is currently pursuing his Masters in Arts Administration at Boston University. Brett works in various mediums that incorporate both conceptual and representational imagery. His current works deliver satire and pick at everyday social concerns on a personal level.

Boyan - Even in the Deer there is a deep eerie darkness in Brett’s work - I like it! His drawings are detailed, full-bodied and heavy with innervation. I’m typically not a great fan of drawings but Brett has managed to deliver a texture and depth in these images which is hard to ignore.

See more of his work: Brett Svetlik

Peter Dowie - Dublin, Ireland

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:33:00 +0200

Peter’s work looks at the contradictions and complex pressures of using aggressive consumption as the engine for our society, concerning mainly arts place within this market driven society, where a market disconnected from ethical priorities wilfully exploits a naive but generally shared belief in visual truth. He is interested in exploring various paradigms of democracy based on the renegotiation of power during our transactions, the place where our art meets the art market, challenging existing models and expanding the options for new social relationships.

John, Acting Editor - The element in Peter’s work which most interests me is the visual commentary on the de-skilling of specialised trade and labour. He implements his own experiences as a butcher, and thus a very different sort of craftsman, in order to construct visceral imagery which conveys, via his choice of colour and the archaic connotations of the medium of painting, a timelessness and an ethereality, in addition to creating a poignant tribute, or preemptive commemoration, to skill-sets which will, if commerce and mass consumerism triumph, gradually disappear.

See more of Peter’s work: http://addressingthecarcass.blogspot.com/

Vince Fraser - London, United Kingdom

Wed, 06 Jan 2010 11:16:00 +0200

Vinyl, Icecapada & Afro

Vince is a freelance digital illustrator / designer based in London who has worked for various clients including British Airways, PC World, BBC and T-mobile.

Boyan - I’m attracted to the complexity and detail of this work. If you see his portfolio on the site, Vince has a great range and wide imagination. While the style has a great popular appeal it also holds some deeper emotive imagery. Great stuff.

See more of his work: Vince Fraser