Visiting Carlo Scarpa sites
Venice: Visiting Carlo Scarpa Architectural Sites
For the past few days I was in Venice, Italy where I got to visit some modern architectural sites including 3 by architect Carlo Scarpa. We were only visiting for three short days (Venice is only 2.5hrs from Ireland and I flew with Aer Lingus) but hit the ground running with an arrival in to Venice at 1.30pm and then a booked architectural tour starting at 2.30pm.
Olivetti Showroom, Fondazione Querini Stampalia and Tolentini Entrance by Scarpa
The three Scarpa sites we visited were the Olivetti Showroom, the Fondazione Querini Stampalia and Tolentini Entrance at the Venice University.
First was the Olivetti showroom which is in San Marco square. It's a small shop that was designed in 1958 to showcase Olivetti products (typewriters). It's a stunning interior with so many worked out details that it was hard to take it all in on our short visit. For me however, it was the feeling or experience of being in the store that was quite amazing. The sense of space is a remarkable achievement.
Japanese inspired architecture by Carlo Scarpa in Venice
Scarpa was inspired by both Japanese architecture and also Frank Lloyd Wright and this can certainly be seen in this window and screen.
Fondazione Querini Stampalia, Venice by Carolo Scarpa
The Fondazione Querini Stampalia is a cultural institution that was founded in the 1860's with the ground floor and garden being redesigned by Carlo Scarpa in the 1960's. It's a really sympathetic redesign and once again there is a particularly serene feeling in the building - particularly with the open water gate that allows water right in to the building.
Carlo Scarpa’s Tolentini Entrance, Venice
The final Carlo Scarpa site we visited was the Tolentini Entrance which was completed after Scarpa's death. It has a specific Scarpa look and is a fine piece of design. See below for two pics of the entranceway. The top pic is the right side and the bottom pic is the whole front.
Venice Modernist Architecture
While not a Scarpa building, we also visited the Casa di Risparmio which is now a bank. It was a highly controversial design as the outside is in complete modern contrast to all of the buildings in the surroundings. Here's a photo of the inside.
Dinner in Venice after the Architectural Tour
After our 4 hour architectural walking tour we got back to our hotel changed for dinner and then went out and ate in literally the first restaurant we came upon!
We were guided in Venice by Francesca from Move Nice and would thoroughly recommend the tour.
HGTV Extreme Homes of the World: Ireland Edition
When HGTV Extreme Homes of The World Visited my house
Back in 2013, a film crew visited my house to film it for an episode of HGTV's Extreme Homes.
It was an interesting weekend with a hardworking crew of 3 who worked from dawn ‘til dusk filming myself and the house. The crew were very friendly and professional and my wife and I really enjoyed the whole process and were very happy with the finished product - it was great to see our house on film in the polished format of HGTV as an episode of Extreme Homes of the World.
Filming Process - HGTV Extreme Homes of the World
Each shot was done a few times. At first the room as a whole would be filmed and then close up shots were done whereby I would highlight and discuss particular details. For example in the shot below to the left I am firstly talking about the deck area as a whole but I also mentioned the detail of the shuttered concrete marked with boards. The they filmed me close up pointing out the shuttering in detail. Presumably then when it came to the editing stage they would piece it all together.
Can you spot what it underneath the deck in the pic below?!
Plywood Cladding in the PIGSY Art Studio
Here’s another example of me being filmed talking about a space which is my studio which is clad in plywood. After the room as a whole was filmed with me talking, they then went on to do a close up of the plywood cladding.
Creating art on film
These are shots of me "painting". I had an empty cup and paintbrush and had to act like I was painting while they were filming. That was fun! It was a lot of big movements and brush strokes.
Staging Scenes in the Hot Tub
The hot tub in our house is sunken and set under the deck with a lid that I designed that is opened using a pulley system. The crew wanted a scene of the hot tub and they asked us to feature and to be filmed chatting in the hot tub. We waited until the sun went down and Enid and I hopped in to the hot tub and we were then filmed talking to each other and enjoying a drink I didn’t get a picture on the day of the exact set up at the hot tub, but we staged the area in the exact way that you can see in the photo below. This was for a photo shoot for a feature in The Sunday Independent (My Favourite Room by Mary O’Sullivan). Filming in the hot tub was done quickly but just before we got out, the producer asked us to do a little acting where we clinked our glasses together and then took a sip of our cocktails. When we saw ourselves on the broadcast TV show you can see us smiling as we do this as we thought it was a little bit cheesy but a bit of fun at the same time. And it made for good TV!
Two cameras
There were two camera men which helped get through the filming promptly. While I was being filmed and interviewed downstairs, the other camera man was filming upstairs in the bedrooms and other rooms that didn’t need me in those scenes.
Frank Lloyd Wright - 140 Maiden Lane, San Francisco
Maiden Lane: Frank Lloyd Wright Building in San Francisco
Frank Lloyd Wright is one my favourite architects of all time and I use any opportunity on my travels to the USA to visit any of his buildings that I can.
San Francisco - seeking Frank Lloyd Wright
Ten years ago, on our last trip to San Francisco, we visited this Frank Lloyd Wright building on Maiden Lane. It was built in 1948 and when you enter the building, you are instantly reminded of the Guggenheim Museum in New York, of which it was the prototype for. Originally it was a Gift Shop but when we visited it back in 2005 it was Xanadu Art Gallery. However, on our most recent visit we found it shut up and we were unable to enter. I see from the Wikipedia page that it has been sold to a high end designer boutique (which was exactly the use that Enid had commented that it would be perfect for while we stood outside and viewed the building). I'm glad to hear it has been sold and hopefully we will get to view it again in the future!
Ageless Contemporary Design by Frank Lloyd Wright
What an incredible building. It is beyond timeless - I think it is actually getting better with age and looks more modern than a lot of buildings built this decade.
Brick Detail - Frank Lloyd Wright Gift Shop, Maiden Lane, San Francisco
Architect by profession, artist by birth
The Architectural life of artist PIGSY
As an architect, one of my most enjoyable projects was when I designed my own house. This labour of love brought a derelict house back from ruins to a home fit for modern living.
To read about the renovation and see pictures of the house currently, click here here to read an article that was published on The Journal.
This is the Studio at the very top of the house - look at the amazing light that floods in!
Enid’s Blog
If you would like to see the state of the house when I acquired it, you can click in to my wife's blog here
Enid documented most of the build which you can read all about if you go to the oldest posts and start reading from there. There are some incredible pictures on her blog and you can also see how bad the house was and what a big project it was in order to restore it to its former glory!
A pint of plain is your only man - Guinness is good for you!
Painting a pint of Guinness: a bar challenge for PIGSY
A few years ago, myself and a friend were having a bar room chat about art. My friend said he didn't think what I paint is art. Of course I disagreed!
My friend then plonked his pint of Guinness on the bar and said that if I could paint his pint he would believe that what I do is art.
I love a challenge - so I took a picture of the pint and got to work.
Here are some pictures of the progress I made.
Of course, this was only a starting point and the finished product was a lot less literal when I put additional art work on the canvas around the pint of Guinness.
My next art piece about childhood friends.....
Childhood Friendships always stay true
Inspiration for PIGSY Art
The starting point for my process generally comes from something like an image, a line of a poem, a concept that intrigues me or maybe a conversation I've had that has sparked something in my mind.
My next piece will take inspiration from the below image which is a photograph of myself and my two childhood friends taken over 35 years ago.
Childhood Gang
We were a gang of 3 and we called ourselves "MBC" which was made up the first letter of each of our names.
That's me to the right with the green hat and the chubby cheeks.
The picture of the three of us somehow reminds me of this Warhol print of Elvis Presley. I think it might be because of our stance (which was a break dancing pose!). What do you think - can you see it too?
Finished PIGSY Piece (Edit 8/3.17):
Here's the finished art piece. It's titled "No Space for Nostalgia" (it was the centre piece in my second solo exhibition and the painting went on to sell on the first night of the show and is now in private collection)
Pigsy-Kemp Collaboration
Art Collaboration
PIGSY plus Kemp
Recently I collaborated with artist Kemp on a special piece. Kemp is a stencil artist so perhaps our creation is better described as a collision rather than a collaboration!!
Kemp's element is the stencil painting in the centre of the work. I glued his piece to an MDF board and then proceeded to paint on the board while drawing inspiration from Kemp’s painting "Salome with the head of John the Baptist".
The finished work is a fantastic juxtaposition of our two unique styles.
A unique Valentine's Gift for art lovers - a limited edition artwork print by Pigsy
Art! A unique Valentines gift for Art Lovers
St. Valentine's Day is nearly upon us. Pigsy artworks are available as limited edition prints, if you are looking for an alternative to the standard gift of a heart shaped box of chocolates.
If your true love is an art lover you can't go wrong with a Pigsyprints which are printed on Hannemuhle Fine Art Paper Mounted on Dibond with a bespoke Lime Washed Tray Frame custom designed by Pigsy and handcrafted in Ireland.
Contact me for further information about prints and original Pigsy works and add an art work that you LOVE to your collection!
Original art - framed paper studies
Or if you are looking for an original artwork, you can buy a framed paper study - see here to look at the full selection that is now available directly from me in my Dublin art studio
Art to whet the appetite! Big Art, perfect for a restaurant space......
Large Scale Art: “I Find You Fascinating” by PIGSY
Many of my pieces are large and perfect for hanging in a restaurant.
"I Find You Fascinating" is 2000mm x 1870mm. It was created using mixed media on canvas and it would be striking in any dining room.
Contact Ronan Campbell in Designyard Gallery for further information about this art work.
Do You Love Me?
Do I Love Me?
Do I Need To Salve My Ego To Create?
Do You Feel The Same Way I Do?
Where I paint - an artist's home studio!
PIGSY Art Studios….
Terenure Art Studio
Currently I work in two locations. The first being a studio in Terenure, Dublin. It's up a steep staircase above a pub and it's got great light. Once I bring a coffee and a sandwich I can easily while the time away painting in this spot.
Ranelagh Home Art Studio
However, my favourite place to paint is in the studio in my house which is once again located at the top of the building. I’ve been painting here since we did the rebuild in 2011. To get to the studio I walk up a glass cantilevered staircase to the top of my house where I enter a plywood clad room with a glass roof. Talk about great light!!
It’s been here that I’ve probably entered my most creative and prolific phase as a full time artist.
PIGSY's “I Find You Fascinating” Solo Art Exhibition
“I Find You Fascinating” by PIGSY, presented by The Kemp Gallery, Dublin
Curated by Steve Kemp, "I Find You Fascinating", the PIGSY solo Art Exhibition opened on Thursday, October 6th 2016 at The Kemp Gallery in Dublin, Ireland.
Featuring ten original artworks including "Attention All" and "Fascinating", the response was extremely positive with most of the paintings selling on opening night.
The opening of your first solo exhibition is one off moment that will never be repeated and as experiences go it was fairly awesome!