Aspirational Art

David Harber`s Fun and Fantasy Pieces

David Harber is an artist whose career I`ve followed for years. And he still has a power to surprise with imaginative take on contemporary three-dimensional designs, which are elevated to an exquisite art form. He is a master of stunning sundials, water features and garden sculptures, and a man behind many bespoke pieces that decorate numerous private and public spaces around the world, from Saudi Arabia, to Singapore.

David`s `Thinking Big` exhibition at 28 Cork Street in London`s Mayfair focused on showcasing a few examples of large scale custom-made and architectural models, some smaller interior-friendly artwork, original watercolours, development sketches and maquette models. I am wearing a Michael Kors dress, my beloved snake-skin boots by Sergio Rossi, and a bag by Michael Kors.
We chatted about David`s fascination with the use of light, shadows, and water reflexions to create dream-like visual effects. No wonder his work earned him an international reputation for truly innovative designs that pay homage to the surrounding landscape, while creating delightful illusions.

http://www.davidharber.co.uk

 Street Art in Singapore

There are so many fab statues and other pieces of art on display in public spaces in Singapore, that you would be spoilt for choice to pick your favourite; here are just a few examples of interesting artefacts I came across. 

Distinguished travellers in Buona Vista area

Shoppers on Orchard Road

Many MRT (transport stations) are lavishly decorated; here - large canvases at Dhoby Ghaut MRT 

Wall of photos in a shopping mall, which leads to Orchard MRT
 

Silver droplets at Promenade MRT  

 ICA Off-Site - Programme of Art Happenings 

Midday tromp through Mayfair took me to Orchard Street, where I discovered an open door, leading to the former Selfridge Hotel. I dived in, keen to see what had become of my old `friend`. It is still gutted inside but until 20 October 2013, it was home to London`s top creatives for a programme of exhibitions, happenings and talks, entitled ` A Journey Through London Subculture: 1980s to Now`. The project, run by Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) showcases London`s alternative scene and explores interconnection between today`s and past counterculture.

I like this fashion-infused reimagining of workwear, presented by a collective of South East London artists called LuckyPDF.

Knitwear label SIBLING (a collaboration between Joe Bates, Sid Bryan and Cozette McCreery, which launched in 2008) displayed a selection of fun-looking knits, including their `Knit Monster` mascot, and hand-embroidered garments.

Some of the installations and exhibits are more provocative than others, but they all fit well in the raw industrial space of this former hotel.

Art in the Afternoon

My feet, clad in Falke tights and shoes from Ras Al-Khaimah (UAE), had spent the afternoon pounding the gangways of the Affordable Art Show in Hampstead. No gawping hoi polloi here. The place was flooded with sophisticated connoisseurs who came to admire and buy all manner of art: driftwood sculptures, pencil work, traditional portraiture, potent photographs, oil and acrylic paintings, figurative illustrations, digital, plaster installations, porcelain, mixed media, etchings….. we were spoilt for choice.  

Anika Manuel`s `Chanel` - acrylic on slate

I am wearing a Michael Kors dress

I liked Claire Partington`s ceramic works, which are inspired by traditional children`s rhymes, legends and folk tales. Lucie Bennett`s perfectly-shaped `Delfine` from her `Naked Burgundy Series` dazzled the viewer with her elusiveness, and Lance Hewison`s portraits were very expressive, due to his technique of shaping the body or face in a way that gives the impression of the complete picture.  

James Doran-Webb`s driftwood entitled `The Emperor`