An incompatible Composition

What a lovely little cabinet in this hallway! But what did the decorator think when s/he hung that abominable board with those plates above the delicate cabinet - it looks as if it were coming down any minute to strike the little cabinet dead. That board with the plates is much too heavy and needs a different place.

I would certainly hang a fine silk painting mounted in an ornamental gilded frame above this gorgeous cabinet such as this one. Not only do the colours of the painting adulate the fine paintings on the cabinet but it compliments the filigree carvings of the wood much more.

The painting belongs to a series of silk paintings which depict the symbols of ancient cultures.

"Celts"
(from the Magic Symbols Series)
silk, 40" x 13"
©Petra Voegtle

(sold)

There are thousands of magical places on this world and only very few I have seen myself. Stonehenge was one of them at a time - some decades ago - where tourism did not overflow the whole area yet and where they did not request yet astronomical entry fees and where the stones were not fenced from any touch yet. But times change...

Stonehenge has always been a fascinating motif for painters and poets and will remain so as long as it exists. I could not withdraw from its spell myself and so this painting on silk Celts became part of the Magic Symbols series. If you would like to know more about the painting please read here.

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GUEST POST: Inmod

Today’s guest post is from Katie, a blogger at Inmod, an online retailer of modern furniture, lighting and décor.

Hi everyone! Taking a note from Petra’s inspired art blog posts, I’ve decided to match up her beautiful artwork with select pieces of furniture that we offer over at Inmod. I don’t know about you, but when I’m thinking of a piece of art, a photograph or drawing for interior spaces, I think of the art drawing in from something within the room, typically a piece of furniture. So, let’s get started!

The first pair we have is the Hayworth Sofa matched with the Ho’okipa silk carving that is 46” x 16”. These two would be a great fit firstly because of the similar colors and secondly because of the texture. The silk carving has interesting texture that coincides with the smooth text of this modern sofa. This sofa is 72” wide, so the carving placed horizontally would look excellent if hung above.

Petra has a wonderful collection of photography that includes many bright blossoms, which I found a perfect match for the Fiore Chair. I chose three of the photos and tiled them above the chair, which would be perfect for a sitting area in a corner of a living room or bedroom. This is a great art/furniture combo for the lover of color.

Finally, I dove into the drawings section of Petra’s collection to find the perfect match for Inmod’s popular Ball Chair. As the Ball Chair is a fun, whimsical piece of furniture, I was in search of a drawing that was equally as fun and full of whimsy. I think I hit the nail on the head by pairing the Ball Chair with Petra’s Vanity drawing, how about you? The oversized drawing measures 58” x 32” – and its character is the perfect accompaniment to the Ball Chair. 

What do you think? What thoughts do you consider when pairing artwork to rooms within your home?

Be sure to check out all of the awesome modern seating available at Inmod and match some pieces of your own choice with Petra’s lovely array of artwork!

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Thank you so much for this lovely post, Katie!!!!

Sometimes you need a Colour Break...

To furnish and decorate a room, a hallway in matching tones might be desirable for many people but too often the result is boring and tiring. An eyecatcher can create so much difference. I would want any room or place to incorporate something exciting, an object, a colour that really demands some attention. If you have a colour palette that consists mainly in beige and brown tones a break is really necessary as in this hallway:

The original art on  the wall certainly looks elegant with the nice shiny frame but I am sure that after a very short while no-one would look at the art any more - it would simply mingle with the background and disappear from your attention.
The contrary would happen with a piece of art such as this one:
a silk carving/sculpture with glowing colours, nothing you would just oversee.

The silk sculpture was inspired by the Hawaiian legends of Pele, the Hawaiian Akua (Goddess), the fire goddess, mother of all life which comes out of the depth of the earth. 
In Hawaiian mythology women were a powerful source of new life and source of spiritual power. In the Polynesian world Mana Wahine - the power of woman - was a force that must never be ignored. It was Hina (Woman) who gave birth to new life, Hina controlled the moon, the tides and the reefs and Hina had the secret of fire.

Pele incorporates a technique called silk carving©, which is a development by the artist. The intent of this technique was to create a symbiosis between carving and fiber art. The surface of the fiber was transformed completely into a relief. The upper layer of this piece was made from one single piece of silk - nothing was sewn on top to add depth. Additionally paints and pigments were used in a manner to give the visual impression of flowing lava in all its glowing colours and the viewer is supposed to feel the heat. But it is "only" a piece of soft sculptured silk.

 "Pele"

( from the Hawaiian Symbols series)
silk carving, 48" x 17"
©Petra Voegtle

If you would like to see more detail photos please check this link

(This art piece was shown at several art venues in the USA and was featured by art critic Cate McQuaid in the Boston Globe.)

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Lost Treasures in the Hallway

The hallway of this house looks marvellous with its space for arts and crafts. So my thought for this stairway was - if it were mine - to hang this silk carving with its trees and floral environmental theme: Lost Treasures as a complementary art piece to the wonderful pottery besides the stairways.

As I already said - the silk carving is an environmental piece and - belonging to the Hawaiian Symbols series - it stands for all the extinguished flora and fauna of this world. Especially the Hawaiian archipelago has lost many of its endemic species thanks to the introduction of too many aliens due to the ignorance of immigrants and natives - mostly not with bad intentions but nevertheless deadly for the existing species.

 original image source from http://www.getdecorating.com

"Lost Treasures"
( from the Hawaiian Symbols series)
silk carving, 66" x 17"
©Petra Voegtle

If you would like to see more detail photos please check this link

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A Dream View from the Bedroom

Although this room definitely lives from its phantastic view - what could be more beautiful than waking up seeing the ocean from your bed - I thought there is something missing: an additional piece of man-made art, a painting that depicts another wonderful view such as this, an inspiration from the beautiful island of Maui, Hawaii.
Rainbow over Wailua is painted on silk. The image shows the view from the Northern side of the Haleakala region where the lava fields were running towards the sea. Details of this paintings you can see under this link.

original image source from http://www.getdecorating.com

"Rainbow over Wailua"
(from the Magic Landscapes Series)
silk, 21" x 40"
©Petra Voegtle

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Listen to the Sounds of the Ocean when you go to sleep...

What could be more relaxing than the sounds of the sea? Soft waves lapping against the sand of a lonesome beach, the sun going down and the rustling of palmleaves, softly swaying in the breeze...

The silk sculpture on the wall may be reminiscent of one of your most beautiful holidays on Hawai'i, or any other at the sea. Colours of dark blue to the light blue of the sky, the turquoise hues above white sand, the greenish shades where the seagrass is growing below the surface - all these colours are represented in this silk carving which is called Ho'okipa after the famous surfer beach on Maui. The silk carving belongs to the series of Hawaiian Symbols.

with courtesy of http://www.livingetc.com
click here for the original image source

"Ho'okipa"
(from the Hawaiian Symbols series)
46" x 16", silk carving
©Petra Voegtle

Spark a little Fire in the Bedroom...

Maybe you know the sentence "sometimes less is more". Often people tend to overload their rooms with lots of "stuff" but in this case I thought that it could not be wrong to add a little extra to the wall in order to spark a little fire.

The artwork on the wall is a small silk caring from the Hawaiian Symbols series and is called Ahi ko A'a which means "fire of the lava". It is made from silk and has been painted.

with courtesy of http://www.livingetc.com

click here for the original image source

"Ahi ko A'a"
(from the Hawaiian Symbols series)
15" x 23", silk carving
©Petra Voegtle