Untitled

Troutman Chair Co.
1997-present

Boarding a flight from Boston to Toronto, I caught a glimpse of this rocking chair at the gate. Turns out that there are a number of these rocking chairs in several airports, but the idea originates from North Carolina's Charlotte Douglas International Airport and their 1997 photography exhibition titled Porchsitting. I like the reimagined environment through displacement of rocking chair.

Untitled

Amy Cheung
2010

The exercise ball has been brought under the wing of numerous physiological contexts, from physical therapy to birthing to just plain sitting. Though unclear of my friend Amy's appropriation of the ball, her use of a papasan frame to contain it unveils a beautiful pairing.

Bouquet V

Willem de Rooij
2010

Made with florist Mireille Ruch, de Rooij's bouquet consists of one flower drawn from 95 different floral species. As one wilts, it is replaced with another of the same. Other arrangements include collaborations with Dutch artist Jeroen de Rijke (1970-2006): Bouquet II that references the robe colors of 2002 Nigerian beauty pageant contestants, and Bouquet IV that uses flowers selected for their gray-scale conversion and overall short range that eliminates stark black and stark white.

The Library of Rhizomatic Activity

Lucy Pullen
2005

Select books in various collections are covered in artist-made reflective dust jackets. As Pullen writes, when photographed, "the book appears to be consumed in a burst of bright white light, and disappears from the photograph." While the dust jacket conceals the book in normal light, in a darkened room it is a beacon.

Constellation

Chu Yun
2006

Makes me want to get busy in a darkened room with lots and lots of electronics. Plus, I like it when artwork requires the absence of conventional light.

Anything Frank Netter

Frank Netter

Photorealism shmotorealism. Unless we're talkin' medical illustrations in the style of Frank Netter. As only an artist can, Netter's gouache paintings infuse the sterility of medicine with command and palpable sensitivity. If you're wondering what my face looks like as I look at Netter's illustrations, sorry, only he could have drawn it.

Souvenirs

Michael Hughes
ongoing

Photographer Michael Hughes superimposes souvenirs over their inspiration, resulting in kitschy but sometimes beautiful reunions. Browse the photos in his Flickr set here.