Twig Terrariums

Terrariums are THE hot trend in the interiors community these days. As the rejuvenating spirits of Spring near, now is the perfect time to delve into this rediscovered phenomenon. The clamor for these creations is in part due to their broad appeal — a hybrid of fine art, biology, design and horticulture. This crossover essence is why — as you may very well guess — HighStreet people do dig them. These labyrinthine concoctions satisfy prevailing trends of locavore, Victoriana, and found-object. “In a laboratory of living design, we conjure art and science to create unusual living objects of wilderness — inspired by far-away landscapes both discovered and imagined.”

HighStreet currently carries a collection of fabulous terrariums by local artist Amy Bogard. We would be remiss; however, to not mention that these wee little worlds represent a realistically attainable DIY project. Do not be intimidated, after all these objects are simply re-purposed old apothecary jars, dusty light bulbs, moss, twigs and figurines, right? Best of all is the fact that even the most concrete-encased urbanite can collect the majority of required materials during a quick stroll around the block — no consumerism needed. From the humblest of beginnings, whether refined or whimsical, most anyone can create a visually stunning, independent and self-sufficient microclimate.

As previously mentioned, terrariums are not a newfangled craze. The prosperity of Victorian era Britain resulted in many women and men with much spare time on their hands. One of the egalitarian hobbies of the time was collecting plants — particularly ferns. Like many greenery-obsessed Victorians, Nathaniel Ward was a London doctor by profession who had an intense enthusiasm for botany.

Installation by Paula Hayes

Dr. Ward’s plants, particularly his ferns, were having difficulty surviving the polluted air of 1820s London. It was intensely frustrating for a passionate collector to not be able to keep the plant of the moment alive. While puzzling over the problem with his ferns, Dr. Ward noticed that the plants placed in his covered insect jars (for studying moths and caterpillars) were actually taking root in the soil. It was a moment of clarity — Dr. Ward realized that his miniature greenhouse could actually protect the plants enough so that they would thrive. Soon after his display at the Great Exhibition in 1851 London, where he flaunted a vibrant fern that had not been watered in 18 years, a Wardian Case (the precursor to the modern terrarium) was promptly nestled in every decorous home.

Terrariums enjoyed a revival in the 1970s in America — picture kitschy and kooky giant brandy snifters dangling in macrame hangers. The creations of today, in contrast, possess a cool and sleek sophistication. Nathaniel Ward could not have dreamed of the fantasy worlds birthed by Paula Hayes, the “high priestess” of terrariums.  Having elevated them to objects of art with her ethereal creations, she is generating some serious buzz in today’s design industry. Hayes, originally from Concord, MA, is an artist who has showcased her works in numerous solo and group exhibitions worldwide. Her pieces have been seen in The New York Times, Artnet, Elle Decor, Interior Design, Garden Design, Vogue Living Australia, and more. What we love about her work is the modern approach of blurring the boundaries between indoors and outdoors while creating magical atmospheres. She refers to her primordial little worlds as verbs rather than nouns.

Although most famous for her exquisite, high-end art terrariums of organically shaped, handblown glass — her affinity for all things green extends to full gardens as well. She has created over twenty full gardens for private clients around the country. Hayes’s popularity among art collectors and the public has swelled dramatically over the past few years. Her installation in the lobby of MoMA, Nocturne of the Limax Maximus, garnered much critical acclaim and landed her a feature on CBS Sunday Morning.

What really sets the modern terrarium apart from its’ predecessor is the functionality that artists are bringing to the work. A prime example of this concept can be seen in the Furnibloom line, clear plexiglass furniture, designed by landscape architect Dagný Bjarnadóttir, that cleverly houses plants of all sorts.

Furnibloom

Terrariums make wonderfully thoughtful gifts and are smart weddig centerpieces.

These terrariums are surfing the wave of  interest in handmade crafts and do-it-yourself fever. Workshops are popping up in cities across the globe. Some of the better resources available online that provide instructions and inspiration are The Slug and The Squirrel, Twig, and Botany Factory. We at HighStreet believe that these multifarious little art objects are stunningly seductive. It also seems that the creative process wondrously soothes our need to nurture while offering fantasy and escape.

That is no small feat.

Here’s the latest and greatest from Karl Lagerfeld. He never ceases to amaze… even at 77 years old. Check out these sublimely minimal glasses he designed for sipping his Diet Coke in collaboration with Orrefors.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWsZgBKjml8

Brad Pitt’s — Make It Right Foundation and a host of other organizations and volunteers are slowly adding affordable housing for those displaced. But the homes are not what you would expect. The structures are clean, modern, and green. All the homes we saw had solar panels, and most importantly, the homes were occupied.

We surmised and later comfirmed that there is debate raging on whether the homes fit the fabric and history of New Orleans architecture. But we say Bravo! We are firmly behind pushing the envelope as you well know, and building green is also on top of our desirables list. Besides, the progress is 100% more than anything the government on any level has built.

We found the “Make-it-Right” houses to be innovative, artful and eccentric, all attributes suitable to New Orleans culture. We also found them to be infinitely more practical than their predecessors. In our opinion — the designs suit their environment. But there is more than that. We think these homes represent the New Orleans “after”. There was a New Orleans “before” and it was a phenomenon, but that New Orleans is no more, and though that was, and is, one hell of a tragedy, there is usually, hopefully some good that comes from the bad. We think what these houses represent is larger than clever architecture — they’ve offered optimism in a neighborhood critical to New Orleans’ downtown culture that had become a wasteland. Now, there are people and families living again in the Lower Ninth Ward.

A city like New Orleans is nothing without its people. The Lower Ninth Ward was home to key contributors to the rich culture of the city. Knowing that these families have been able to stay because now there is a place to live is something that hits us deep in the gut. We get choked up just thinking about it. Why? Because New Orleans is special, and if there is anything even slightly misanthropic about you, upon your first visit the town gets under your skin.

On this visit, our first in some years, crossing North Claiborne to the southern part of the Ninth Ward is hard to take as the destruction and abandoned homes are still there; still so apparent. But some optimism exists around the area now as these newly-housed people go on with their lives. If you are there, make a reservation and stop by Ronald Lewis’ museum The House of Dance and Feathers and see what makes this neighborhood a real home for real people as opposed to whatever myopic perception outsiders have had of the area. Mr. Lewis, a Mardi Gras Indian, is deliberately vocal as he orates summary on all the non-profits coming into the area and, “Taking our personal information.”

“They’ve got us standing in lines and filling out stacks of papers. They’re making promises, collecting up our stories and then pocketing the grants from the data taken.”

Ronald Lewis of The House of Dance and Feathers Museum

New Orleans is not itself without people like Ronald. Our meeting with him made our trip more meaningful. His transcendence of this disaster is the best of the stuff this extraordinary place has to offer. When we asked Ronald what he wanted most, his response?

“I want my twelve grandchildren back.”

This of course, stuck with us as we made our way around the Crescent City and deeper into Creole Country…the fact that almost all of his family, who once lived in blissfully-close proximity, are now scattered to the winds.

He wants more tangible progress like the homes just north of him. We couldn’t agree more and urge you to contribute to the direct housing and rebuilding efforts.

New Orleans took a hit so large that it’s a wonder it still functions, but the people are so intrepid, so cool, they hold it together for themselves and for visitors like us. This city should not be forgotten. It is an American City, and yet the only city like it the world. It is a city that has danced to its own beat and blended itself miraculously and beautifully. We honor the people of The Crescent City, admire their dignity and hope you will too.

According to the people of the Lower Ninth, movie-star Brad Pitt is just a regular guy who’s done good.

Michael Spurrier and Leah Spurrier.HighStreet.Cincinnati

Mark Twain via circa71.wordpress.com

Writing one’s autobiography should most likely be a daunting and befuddling task. How does one gain a properly editorialized perspective on experiences, relationships and past actions? What of all those elements most defines you? Could you be truly honest with yourself? Could this possibly be captivating to readers?

It seems rather impossible to wrap one’s head around. Such an undertaking is apparently so cerebrally challenging that Mark Twain — the “father of American literature” as proclaimed by William Faulkner — was overwhelmed with the process. Luckily for us — this literary genius eventually solved the riddle.

“It is a system which is a complete and purposed jumble — a course which begins nowhere, follows no specific route, and can never reach an end while I am alive …”

Our fascination with Twain appears interminable as well. Originally slated for a 7,500 print by editors at the University of California Press, the production run is up to 275,000 copies after a few short months. Frantic retailers, scramble as they may, cannot keep the 4-pound colossus on their shelves. Twain apparently always wanted to write an autobiography yet struggled mightily with the execution. He attuned his troubles to trying to follow a chronological calendar; a plan that, he wrote, “… starts you at the cradle and drives you straight for the grave, with no side excursions permitted “.

The man born as Samuel Langhorne Clemens led a tumultuous life full of mental anguish, family dysfunction, illness and financial turmoil. His pen name borrowed from riverboat life during his days on the Mississippi River (“mark twain!” is an exclamation indicating a safe water depth of two fathoms for the boats). As a fascinating perhaps non-coincidence, Halley’s Comet was visible in the sky above on both the day of his birth and day of his passing.

As adept as Twain was with the written word, he was surpassingly marvelous as a storyteller. He fascinated his contemporaries with an ability to translate complex ideologies into spontaneous speech. Not coincidentally, he remains one of the most oft-quoted literary talents. He was complicated and contradictory in his political and social commentaries that were founded in anti-imperialism, abolitionism and emancipation. He was critical of organized religion and Christianity while calling American soldiers “uniformed assassins”. His “Votes for Women” speech in 1901 was a critical spark plug for the realization of Women’s Suffrage.

“I have been an author for 20 years and an ass for 55.”

So Twain hit upon the right way to do his autobiography — dictating his experiences to his stenographer while propped up against a mound of regal pillows, clad in a silk dressing gown of exotic Persian patterns. This brilliant satirist had a hard time figuring what rules to break as he struggled to account for himself during the last few years of his life. Amidst the nearly 2,000 pages of dictation were searing accounts of venomous and inflammatory relationships with many walks of life. Candid and unfiltered were these resentment-laden tales from disharmonies that most never knew existed.

” … she was excitable, malicious, malignant, vengeful, unforgiving, selfish, stingy, avaricious, coarse, vulgar, profane, obscene, a furious blusterer on the outside and at heart a coward.”

The completely non-linear orations from Twain have always been an irascible handful for editors. Biographers were unsure how to structure the passages and his daughter guarded the passages, believing much of the text to be excessively scalding and visceral. It was his strict wish that his story not be released until 100 years after his death on April 21, 1910. It was not only a protective gesture towards his loved ones, but also a stroke of marketing genius. Despite efforts to safeguard the material over the years, parts of the autobiography surfaced, only increasing the thirst for the rancorous humor and rich social commentaries that framed his work.

“It is by the goodness of God that in our country we have those three unspeakably precious things: freedom of speech, freedom of conscience, and the prudence never to practice either of them.”

The hunger for the first volume of his autobiography (volumes 2 and 3 are on rumored to be on the way in all of their unabashed glory) from new generations of readers has left Twain as one of the very few authors to have published new best-selling books in each of the last three centuries.

Ernest Hemingway stated that “all modern American literature comes from a book by Mark Twain called Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”. He changed the rules of fiction when he let a redneck kid tell his story in his own dialect. He seemed to flow a classic combination of wit and insight that seemed particularly American and belied his iconic image clad in the benign white suit and bowtie.

It seems to us that he truly was a master showman of his time — yet ahead of his time — and ultimately cool. His new autobiography finally gives us, out of all the chaos, a story about Mark Twain, as told exactly by Mark Twain released precisely when he wanted. It is undeniably relevant and fascinating right now.

HighStreet.Cincinnati

Born in Fumel, Lot-et-Garonne, France to the country’s chief school superintendent, Jean appeared on a path to a technical career when he discovered drawing. His architecture practice began at age 25 and he was brought to the world stage with his renowned design of the Arab World Institute building in Paris in 1987. In 2008, Nouvel won the Pritzker Prize, the highest architecture award . Presently Atelier Jean Nouvel has one of the largest design firms in France with offices in Paris, London, New York, and other cities. Much like other architects including Frank Lloyd Wright, Nouvel designs many aspects of a structure including interior elements such as door handles, tables, chairs, and water taps.

Completed projects litter the country of France, Japan, United States, Brazil, Spain, Germany, and the United Kingdom. One simply can stroll Manhattan and stumble upon one of several of his works, including 40 Mercer in SoHo, and 100 11th Avenue.

Future works include several buildings in New York, Los Angeles, and  Qatar.

Charlie Rose Interview (Click)

Nouvel on CBS Sunday Morning (Click)

As we’ve been roaming the streets and subways of NYC, a couple movie posters recently caught our eye. Both feature dark, saturated close ups of the main character’s face, with white text running boldy over the image. The posters that immediately drew us in are for The Social Network and I’m Still Here. We had to investigate who was the brain was behind these works.

Neil Kellerhouse is a Los Angeles based graphic designer who is responsible for dozens more incredibly well done movie posters. Most often working in a dark color palette or sepia tones, many of his posters are eerie, almost haunting. Kellerhouse’s color choices work well with the movies in which he has been commissioned (mostly dramas, horror films or dark comedys). We absolutely love his play on light, which is what initially drew us into his work.

We will be keeping our eyes peeled for more posters by this guy. We are looking forward to seeing what he will do next.

HighStreet.New York

We are just loving what this guy is doing. Designer and sculptor Ryan McElhinney constructed his Toy Lamp of old unwanted toys, bonding them together with adhesive, and finishing them in a high gloss polyurethane lacquer.

He’s also created other products in the recycled toy theme. Toy mirrors and large lighting sculptures as well as his other design endeavors can be seen on his website. ryanmcelhinney.co.uk We always appreciate a little lightness or fun with our high design.

Baroudi, specializing in ancient textiles and Hibr having a passion for antique furniture create their unique pieces in their Beirut studio with a team of highly skilled artisans. Sustainability is an important aspect of their vision, as all of the fabrics used are recycled vintage textiles from countries along the Silk Road. Each piece of furniture is uniquely designed based on the tapestry, tartan, lace, or handkerchiefs meticulously hand selected for the piece.

Bokja designs are highly coveted by collectors, artists, and designers. The influential Bokja studio has been appointed to produce furniture for high-end fashion boutiques such as Matthew Williamson and Christian Louboutin. We think they make great conversation pieces. A little bit of history, a little bit of culture, a little bit of color, and a little bit of texture. Every room could use a combination like that.

HighStreet.Cincinnati

Spontaneous parties are the best. We know, we have spontaneous dance parties at HighStreet weekly. Often while remerchandising, we find ourselves compelled by a fresh new song on the HighStreet soundtrack, and we have to take a much deserved pause… and break it down. You know, no big deal.

DUS Architecten and Studio for Unsolicited Architecture feel the same way. Last month they circulated a flyer for The Bucky Bar in Amsterdam, which read “A spontaneous public building… beers, umbrellas and DJs Chrille Brun and Per Handsome.”

The firms built a Buckminster Fuller (inventor of the geodesic dome) inspired structure on a street corner composed solely of orange umbrellas, and threw a party. There were djs, drinks, and a bunch of cool people. 300 of them actually hung around in the freezing cold to dance.

Now you have a spontaneous party. With or without umbrellas. Then come by HighStreet and share.

HighStreet.Cincinnati.

Everything I Have (Closeup) via jamescohan.com

It takes a true creative virtuoso to transform a collection of pencil shavings, dead flies, taco shell crumbs and scotch tape into a study of societal angst that leaves viewers pregnant with misanthropic neuroses. Such a genius is British artist Simon Evans — ever humble and almost unwilling to appreciate the significance of his scrappy pieces that combine elements of writing, collage and drawing to convey engaging displays of maps, diagrams, diary entries, lists and inventories. They are inimical illustrations of personal anxieties and lusts juxtaposed against universal humanitarian themes like war, poverty and racism.  The titles suggest helplessly yet charmingly organized disorder that revels in the futility of humankind.

“How to live with a loved ones illness — don’t believe them.”

Simon Evans was always doodling and sketching as a child yet shunned the thought of formal art training. He spent time skateboarding on the streets of London.  The professional world of skating soon called him to San Francisco. It seems like exposure to the cocky and egotistical nature of his contemporaries started a swirling of distemper and isolation. He got a crappy job at a little coffee shop and sunk into the starving artist role. Bookish curiosities drew Simon into short story writing. He wrote strange little tales with fantastical whimsy. There was a gag about a girl with an artificial apple up her bum. Try as he might, Evans was not comfortable with the structure of literal creation and resorted back to sketching.

Simon admits to romantic notions of the isolationism of Swiss artist Paul Klee — with other common parallels such as mixed media experiments and the soft, pastel color recipes. He was also fascinated by the fairytale satire of Jonathan Swift’s novel Gulliver’s Travels. Simon seemed unable to get a hold of the scratchy and unapologetically rough visions and discover a process to satisfy himself. Even though he never produced much finished work, others took notice of the churning, gnashing and turbulent brilliance.

“People look at me better when I carry flowers or eat fruit.”

Ordinary Bones via photobucket.com

Amanda Reicher of Adobe Books Backroom, a San Francisco think-tank gallery, gave Evans an opportunity to display his work. In typical fashion, he struggled with the framework of a finished venture and grew exasperated as the deadline approached. In a panicked frenzy of self-loathing he ripped up his pieces, taped them back together and scribbled fragmented thoughts and searing commentaries. He felt strangely satisfied — a pugilistic process — a bloody birth. The Adobe Books show led to a spot at the Jack Hanley Gallery in San Francisco. He was also awarded a turn in the prestigious SECA show at the SFMOMA. Although Simon has been waiting — almost eagerly — for bad things to happen, his juvenile scribblings of obsessive hang-ups, woes, prejudices and pretensions have become internationally acclaimed. “Oh, sure — the art world feels bad too”- he winces — “Competition, stardom, I don’t like it — it frightens me”. He also does not appreciate the pedantries and classifications of the intellectual art world. Prizing solitary journeys above all, he bristles at the popular notions that the pictures he makes belong to the Mission School.

“Success is a bigger toilet.”

Simon welcomes the judgments of society. How do we react to things simultaneously ugly and beautiful? We look at his work and feel helplessly naked — somebody found our diary that we left out, or the discarded love note to our sixth-grade crush, and has pieced it back together for all to see.  To carry the notion of transparency and visceral audience contact further, he has even included his phone number in several pieces. Such a dubious action no doubt renders strange results — but he is not hiding.

“Sex is like fighting but wetter.”

There is a comfort to living in the moment, a security in letting go of regrettable comments, burying past hurtful actions. The art of Simon Evans does not allow us that luxury. He celebrates the insecurities of permanence and display. He breaks down our collective existence with flowcharts of all our materialistic greed, bad behaviors and irrational fears.  The look is often adolescent and coarse yet leads to profound, brooding and overwhelming wisdom. Evans admits to being a nervous person. Now back in his hometown, he feels so full of information and commentary that he feels like he is going insane. His cynical nature needlessly frets that he will someday be exposed as a fraud. Habitually incongruous, this worry leaves Simon at ease, dreaming of crawling back to the corner pie shop, making art and falling in love.