studio shots

working on it...

(didn't even notice the picture Mike posted of me below - too funny)

So, just a little more of a step by step, in case you are interested.

working

Katie has been breaking her back while working on the mold of this hunting dog head that is bound for an upcoming exhibition. This is a large 3-d print that came from a scan of an old German porcelain figurine of a hunter and his hounds. The original dog head was less that an inch long. His ears and lower jaw are molded separately. I think this form is one of our best yet and there are several large projects already coming from it.

High Street install

Last week, we installed our squirrel chandelier "PVR's Garden" at High Street in Cincinnati. We love the way it looks in the window, especially driving by late at night. Makes us think that this might look even better installed in our new house.... Hmmmm.

thinking about...

Dutch Still Lifes and how to bring some of their goodness into our work...

The top piece is from the Taft Museum in Cincinnati, the bottom two from the Art Institute of Chicago.

Just giving you a heads up.

final photo

Finally, I am uploading the finished photos from our Window Display in the Short Vine area of Cincinnati. This was a collaboration with Future Blooms, who put up multiple displays in the windows of vacant buildings in the area. We were going for an over the top, mash up of our work - branches and squirrels with flowers and patterns. The back panel is my favorite part - and gives the whole piece a fantastical feel.
12' x 4' x 1.5'

the studio

Halloween is the perfect day to get work done in the studio - no one is around at all...

This is the latest batch of work, heading out to High Street to round off an earlier shipment this September for their store and new ecommerce site. After this - we have some big BIG projects coming up that we are so excited to start working on. Coming SOON!

More fron the Slow Service Line

These bowls fit in to our Slow Service project that has taken form to reference, in a way, the concepts of slow food, slow design etc. Inspired by European porcelain patterns, the imagery is hand printed, painted, and been through multiple firings. On the left is a construction worker monkey who has trapped his own tail in a board, complete with a harlequin pattern background, and on the right fancy birds with Sevre inspired pattern and lustre. These pieces are being shipped to The Clay Studio ,in Philadelphia, for their gifted exhibition.Click on the image to see the fine detail.

back to normal

Mike came home from Poland to a hero's welcome in last week,

which cheered Chewy up tremendously.

A small example of the work Mike made in the factory.... For more images, click here.

finally

Slow Service is here! Took a quick shot of the tumblers so far - hand thrown, printed, glazed, and painted. (slow might be an understatement) Inspired by Sevres and Meissen patterning, but loosened up a bit. I like the way this is going.

install

A couple pictures of the window display install in progress. Sudsy Malones is not as square and true as it looks from the outside. So, we built a box on the inside to frame in our windows...

Then started hanging up the work.... Will post the finished pictures soon once we get the lighting in place. So far so good. The guys who run the shops in the neighborhood found it all highly entertaining.

backdrop

We are busy working on our window display, and set up shop in our new (to us) basement. Mike is taking off for a residency in Poland in less than a week, and our idea is a little intense to say the least. So, for now a snapshot of our backdrop in progress.

snarling head

Coming soon will be this snarling dog head in porcelain. It is HUGE and I am so excited to get started. The dog was scanned from this Nymphenburg figurine. But, Mike and I do have a couple other things on our plate. One, we moved into a new house which will be our most expensive and labor intensive art project to date. And second, we both have huge trips planned in the next month, so our studio time will be a little hit or miss.

spotted!

Apartment Therapy yesterday featured the "black hole home office" - which features our wolf light front and center! Very very cool. The light was purchased from SHOW, one of our favorite LA shops, with a wonderful owner.

Spotted by a friend who is curating some amazing new projects in NYC right now. Check it out.
(thanks!!)

next...

We are currently hashing out ideas for an upcoming window display project. I can't wait.
Just not sure which window is ours yet... will keep you posted.

slow service

Finally, we are starting up our slow service line. Each piece is hand thrown, printed, glazed, and then painted. Turns out throwing is not as slow as I thought. It is the painting that will do me in. More images soon.

parade

Tomorrow morning we are meeting at Prairie to make die cut/cut silhouette paper flags to carry in the Northside 4th of July parade. This should be hilarious.

The Prairie banner to lead the group...(look out Martha Stewart)

summer

Summer Reading List, part 1. Currently, we are taking a break from the studio, to catch up on reading, enjoy the pool, bbq, drink, and stay up too late. We have some new ideas in the works, just need to let them brew for a while...

the squirrel chandelier!

We could not be happier! This has been in the workings for a while, with a lot of back and forth about how all the parts come together. Mike did an amazing job with the squirrels, giving them little collars for the ringed pieces of cut paper. For the ceiling, we had a die made, so cutting and sewing the long strands was a breeze. The neon worked perfectly, illuminating the space in an eerie light, especially if you drive by the gallery late at night. We love how the neon is bright without being distracting - you can actually look into it to see the squirrels close up.

Hanging Dead Project II

Hanging Dead Project II, from our show at Prairie. After making the navy squirrels, we went back to our old stand by - white. Mike also made the branches a little more streamlined, so they read as brackets rather than trees.. Although, a lot of people asked about the "rats", so who knows? Same varmint family. Details shots below.


Porcelain, china paint, luster, with die cut paper tails.

Close up

A close up of Mike's china painting skills - this harlequin pattern squirrel is pretty amazing! I love the way the image stretches across the back and arms....

opening night at Model Citizens NYC

We have been crazy busy setting up for our solo show that opens this Friday in Cincinnati, so we were unable to attend Design Week this year. Luckily my brother was able to stop by the Model Citizens opening party on Saturday night and snap some pictures of our work and the giant crowds of people! Core 77 did a nice write up here.

"Hanging Dead Project I" made its official debut and we could not be happier with the result.

We are busy installing all this week, but stay tuned for "Hanging Dead Project II" plus a new chandelier that really takes the cake.

Model Citizens NYC 2010

Future Retrieval is a Model Citizen!! We just sent 5 boxes of brand new work to the Model Citizens' pop up exhibition in conjunction with ICFF and NYC Design Week. The opening is this Saturday night, from 5-8pm. (show location and hours listed above) Installation pictures coming soon.

We spent all day Sunday packing up the work. Our dining room before and after (day to night).

Art Chicago

Future Retrieval at Art Chicago!! We had several pieces in the Iconoclast booth, part of the MCA pop up shop. Photo taken with the world's oldest camera phone.

Working with Interior Designers

We have been working with Mark Christofi Interiors for a showroom at W Hotel in Boston. Our aesthetic and Marks vision make for a handsome collaboration as the Wolf Lights are looking pretty sweet in this condo. More images coming soon.

next

We have a couple exciting ventures happening in the next month, so we will keep you posted once they get a tiny bit closer. Right now they are far enough away to keep us in the studio, but not freaking out just yet...
A preview of the squirrel in progress - Sevre patterning across the body with a full tail made from die cut paper. (studio shot) Mike has been putting in serious hours getting this form just right, and has a few more ideas up his sleeve.

musicnow

A close up view of our installation at MUSICNOW, in collaboration with Country Club. The show is located in the Gold Room of Memorial Hall, so we cast everything in various shades of yellow porcelain.
The tops of the pianos (two facing each other) seemed to be the perfect place for "Composite Composition I and II" - very springtime, with canetoads and rats emerging from flower clusters large and small.
Finally, our "Figurine" and "Bust" are displayed in the front entryway case, with rats on gold dollies. A nod to the permanent display on the opposing side of the hall.... And tonight - St. Vincent!!

spring break

A quick peek at the interior of our next show space - we are creating a couple new pieces that will blend in perfectly. Some sort of scenario on top of the pianos and set up in the entryway cases... install in 9 days.

Hunting dogs on the loose

Yes!!! More snarling dogs and we are so excited to get cracking on these bad boys. This 3-d scan data was taken from a German porcelain figurine made in the mid 18th century. We love bringing stuff back.

making molds

(above) Cane toad - negative (in the works)
(below) giant flower - actually working

We have been in mold making mode for the last month, and are finally starting to reap the benefits. Mike's squirrel is looking AMAZING and the giant flower is working like mad. Finally, something is happening... Off to NYC tonight to see the Whitney, Armory Show, and some oldies at the Met this weekend.