{favourite five: artist kimia kline}

Whether she is sipping café au lait in Paris, studying fine art in Madrid, or on a long-afternoon drive through lavender fields in Northern California, artist Kimia Kline continually draws inspiration from the stunningly beautiful things that surround her.

The artist's use of light brushstrokes and soft color schemes -- blushing rose, taupe, ivory, lilac & amaranth -- create the sense of morning sunlight peeking through lacy curtains and evoke thoughts of lazy afternoon picnics on sandy beaches.





Kimia's paintings have been featured in solo and group exhibitions at the Candystore Collective and the Swell Gallery, both in San Francisco, as well as in art exhibitions all over the world. She has won international acclaim, and was the winner of the NYAXE Gallery competition in 2009, and a national exhibition, 12"x12", at the Todd Gallery in 2010.



Kimia has had the dream-like opportunity to experience living in many countries around the world, places like Spain, Israel, the US, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Japan and Namibia, and in a few weeks, she will be moving to India for her next chapter; each place has influenced her paintings in a thousand and one ways, and this week, she reveals her:

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{five favourite inspirations for painting & drawing from around the world}

1. During our honeymoon to Thailand, we visited the flower market in Bangkok. It was one of the most vibrant places I've ever seen. Flowers have always been a source of inspiration for me, and I constantly find myself going back to these photos.

2. During a homestay in Madrid, I came across a little museum off the beaten path called the Museo Thyssen. It had a beautiful Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele collection, two of my favorite painters. It was the first time I'd seen their work in person, so this museum will always hold a special place in my heart. Their use of pattern and the female form have greatly influenced me over the years and continue to inspire me.

3. In college, I studied abroad in Kyoto, Japan. I fell head over heels in love with everything about that gorgeous city, especially the woodblock prints. The muted colors and flattening of space in this artistic tradition are elements that I often utilize in my own work.

4. Ever since I was a little girl, libraries have been a sort of haven for me. The first time I visited the British Museum in London, I fell head over heels in love with the library. There's just something about being surrounded by books and knowledge that makes me feel like anything is possible.

5. My favorite spot at home in San Francisco is the magical Flora Grubb. It's like a modern day secret garden, filled with handmade vases, air plants and lemon trees. Sometimes when I visit I take my sketchbook with me and draw for hours. Plus they make really yummy scones.

And unable to stop at just five, Kimia concludes:

Every time I visit New York, I notice my art influenced by the fashion there. I find so much inspiration in the way designers come up with new beautiful ways to dress the body and express themselves. Fashion for me is living art that surrounds us on a daily basis. My shelves are filled with copies of magazines like Vogue and W that I've collected over the years. I've noticed that whenever I'm looking for new painting ideas or color palettes, I find myself going back to their pages. And of course, there are summer picnics in Parisian parks -- there's nothing more beautiful to me than the glowing light and ephemeral colors of a warm summer day. Capturing the whimsical quality of afternoon picnics is an element I try to infuse in my paintings, as well as the nostalgia I feel towards fleeting summer days.

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{p.s.} previous favourite fives:
* interior designer: tricia foley
* jeweler: camille eddera
* actress & fashion muse: chloë sevigny
* floral stylist: denise porcaro
* entrepreneurs: rent the runway
* designer: rachel ashwell

~ laily


{japenese woodblock print in the final image, from here}

{the route of the royal wedding processions}

. . . finding myself really quite excited . . . will you be watching?

{p.s.} and doesn't the route of the royal wedding processions look positively lovely rendered in watercolours?

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* u p d a t e :
available as here from the house that lars built


{image: full time with dental via patterson maker}

{artist: carly waito, oil on masonite}

. . . if you found coe & waito's delicately lovely pine cones utterly inspiring, toronto-based designer & ceramicist carly waito's stunning oil on masonite paintings of minerals will have you searching for your long-lost easel and forgotten box of paints and get caught up in creating beautiful things . . .

{images: carly waito via all the mountains}

{artist: alison watt}

. . . stunningly beautiful works by scottish painter alison watt, described as "one of the leading lights of the scottish contemporary art world" and a graduate of the glasgow school of art; while still a student, watt won the john player portrait award and was commissioned to paint a portrait of the late queen mother

in 2000, watt became the youngest artist to be offered a solo exhibition at the scottish national gallery of modern art with shift, an exhibition of 12 paintings featuring fabric alone; inspired by the work of french neo-classical artist jean-auguste-dominique ingres, the paintings are large, close-up studies of white draperies:



{images: colline via [design] relevant and national galleries of scotland}

{beautifully framed}

Always lovely to discover new ways of looking at things, and have taken many photos of many beautiful galleries, so was thrilled to discover this take on gallery photography: viewing the paintings not as whole works, but as a collection of beautifully framed objects . . .

{image: flickr}

{vintage portraits}

An artist once requested that I sit for a portrait, and although I graciously declined, it has been great fun being swept up in the beautiful world of vintage portraits - searching for the perfect one, and following the discoveries of others . . .

{via a beautiful living}

{portraits with a neoclassical twist at JDG}

{portrait of woman from Santa Barbara at paris hotel boutique}

{via a beautiful living}

{Shoot Factory via absolutely beautiful things}

{photography by Roger Davies; O at Home Spring 2008}

Completely inspired by this collection of portraits of varying sizes and frames --flanked by a pair tufted fuchsia chairs, it is an arrangement of pure sophistication.

{links to this post:}
the gallery effect; a great loss; a great find; vintage lady portraits

{images: 1 - flickr; 3 - JDG; 4 + 7 - Paris Hotel Boutique Journal}

{jan de vliegher - paintings}

{schonbrunn.2007.oil on canvas.80x120cm}

Came across Jan De Vliegher's incredibly beautiful paintings while browsing the ever-inspiring Dear Ada.

The wonderfully talented and prolific De Vliegher paints an array of subjects and topics, including statues, landscape, the sea, still life, and even glass, but it's his breathtaking renderings of luxurious interiors that are most captivating . . .

{hofburg.2007.oil on canvas.80x120cm}

{window2.2007.oil on canvas.165x110cm}

{schonbrunn.2007.oil on canvas.40x60cm}

{cafe.2007.oil on canvas.120x80cm}

{hofburg.2007.oil on canvas.40x60cm}

{hofberg.2007.oil on canvas.160x240cm}

{black lingerie}

{Living etc. February 2008; photography by Earl Carter}

I've been transfixed by this black lingerie painting by Brian Ayling, and even moreso since I haven't been able to find much information on the artist or his work . . .

{update: the lovely and resourceful Joanna managed to find an article from the Telegraph}

FASHIONABLE people with money to burn don't think twice about furnishing their homes with Ralph Lauren four-posters, piles of Donna Karan cushions and Gucci ashtrays. Now, in their quest to discover new methods of interior design one-upmanship, they are falling at the paint-splattered shoes of Brian Ayling, who paints pictures of clothes.

For those who love dressing well, it's not just the pleasure of making a purchase or how it feels when worn but the way the creation looks that sends a shiver down the spine. Commissioning a picture of your favourite dress, skirt or bag immortalises it.
"I think that having a picture painted of clothes is an extension of a worthwhile shopping trip," says Ayling. One couple even commissioned him to paint the Prada, Gucci, Chanel and Harvey Nichols bags they amassed after a shopping spree.

Ayling's clients include Sir Terence Conran, who asked him to paint the coats, scarves and umbrellas hanging in the cloakroom of his Mezzo restaurant. He was also asked to paint a Fashion Targets Breast Cancer T-shirt for the London boutique Helsinki.

Maria Abraham, manager of Helsinki, is so taken by Ayling's work that she commissions a new painting for the shop every season. "People always stop and react to the pictures. Often they ask what the point of them is. But there isn't a point - they just look nice."

Ayling began painting clothes by accident. With a degree in fine art from Birmingham College of Art, he started work as a freelance textile designer. Surrounded by glossy magazines, he decided to paint some of the featured clothes. "I then painted one of my old suits, and I also did a couple of second-hand leather jackets which belonged to a friend."

His most recent project was a Christmas present: "A husband sneakily 'borrowed' his wife's favourite Fendi baguette bag so that I could paint it in time for Christmas." Clever man: he must have realised that the way to a woman's heart is through her clothes and accessories.

{Thanks, Joanna!}

{holly farrell}

{beautiful new paintings by holly farrell}

{a family affair}

{left: "Sky Light" by Paris Gerrard; right: "White Roses" by Jill Barton}

I am admittedly a little behind on my correspondence: last week, I received a very lovely e-mail from Paris and Jill, two talented artists from Salt Lake City, Utah. What makes these two painters special is that they are mother and daughter, each with similar, yet unique artistic styles. Their bodies of work consist of a broad and interesting range of approaches, from still life, to landscape, impressionistic, to Chinoiserie-inspired strokes, to daughter Paris' editorial selections.

Regardless if you prefer still life or landscape, it's clear that talent runs in the family.

{"Change of Mind" and "Polka Dot Wedge" by Paris Gerrard}

{"A Quiet Evening" and "Summer Roses" by Jill Barton}

{"Butterfly III", a collaboration: Jill Barton and Paris Gerrard}

{"Blue Magpie" and "Asian Paradise-Flycatcher", a collaboration: Jill Barton and Paris Gerrard}

{To view more work and for more information, visit parisgerrard.com and jillbartonart.com}

{more holly farrell}

A little vintage Holly Farrell to start off your weekend.

Happy weekend everyone!

{perfect pairings: wallpaper + paintings}

Still searching for the perfect wallpaper and have yet to come across anything I want to commit to. But inadvertently came across theses pairings of wallpaper patterns and bird paintings . . .