HAPPY NEW YEAR 2014!!

More Is More: How to Wear the Spring 2014 Collections photographed by Craig McDean...

ANNABELLE SELLDORF RENOVATES A NEW YORK TOWNHOUSE ... Overseeing a top-to-bottom remodel, the AD100 architect brings a light, airy feel to the home of art dealer Christophe Van de Weghe and his wife, Anne-Gaëlle..

Swiss artist Urs Fischer’s exhibition at Sadie Coles HQ centers around an undulating sea of 3,000, pastel-colored plaster raindrops suspended throughout the galley’s expanse. a psychedelic storm cloud looms overhead, pouring down as over-sized drips, yet the quality of each bulbous pendant cast from a hand-modeled prototype resonates with a cartoonish quality. ‘melodrama’ skews the viewers sense of scale, requiring observers to pass through narrow channels and weave through precise pathways. the irregularity of the objects, their chroma, playful traits, and their pervasion of the space is emblematic of the fairytale-like surrealism that characterizes fischer’s oveure. echoing the asymmetrical silhouettes drooping from the ceiling are new sculptures rendered in clay. reclining nude representations are repeated throughout the space, each lying headless on a crudely formed chaise lounge. evocative of tragic pompeian casts from ancient times, the fragmented ladies contrast the mass of raindrops above. the floor-based works and the suspended shapes establish a ‘heaven and earth’ tableau that is at both familiar and otherworldly.

German artist and photographer Claudia Rogge uses the human form as the study for her imagery influenced by the elaborate ornamentation of baroque style paintings. the specific arrangement and composition of the bodies often bring about visual illusions and complex patterning. her work often describes themes of mortality, beauty, lust, and sin. images from rogge’s recent series ‘lost in paradise’ sees variations of classical heavenly panoramas, translating the theme of baroque ceiling frescoes into photographic form. a hand-painted impression is achieved, represented by dramatic chiaroscuro and ornate motifs. the specific posing of the models strips them of their 3-dimensionally, rendering them near-flat figures, enhancing the optical trick.

Stephen Sills New York House by NYSD..