A Plate in the Bedroom?

A white bedroom such as this one really belongs to a beach house or cottage near the sea.It looks charming. The only critic I have here is the plate on the wall. Matching colours is wonderful and matching materials too and I think that the plate was meant to complement the lamp foot and vessel. But a plate as decoration is great for a kitchen or dining room but for a bedroom?

To be honest I were afraid of this thing falling into my face while I am taking a nap...

I'd prefer something lighter and still complementing the colours in this room above my bed - a painting such as this one: White Wall from the Reminiscences series, virtually framed into a wooden frame matching the rollo in the window.

original image source from My Home Ideas/ Southern Accents

You need to click on the photo in order to be able to see the intricate details...

"White Wall"
(from the Reminiscences series)

acrylic, 26" x 18"

©Petra Voegtle

The painting is called White Wall and is part of my Remininscences series, a painting series, that was created from my photo documentary about the Olympic Student Village in Munich, that has been torn down 2 years ago in order to be re-constructed.

In order to create a kind of memorial for the beautiful and often funnily painted walls which are now all lost I took hundreds of photos from the village. But this was not enough for me - I also decided to create a painting series from the most impressive and beautiful parts i.e. walls, doors and windows. The peeling paints and especially the marks all the vines left on the plaster created wonderful patterns and structures. There is an extra photo series only about these wall motifs which you will find here.

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Romance pure and a chinoiserie Wallpaper

Did I tell you that I love romantic bedrooms? Probably. But bedrooms are the only rooms in a house where you can live out these kinds of feelings and not be embarrassed if you do so because hardly anyone else (at least not a stranger) will know. This is an argument - isn't it? Your bedroom is all yours and you can do what you want.
Btw - I adore the richly carved bed in this photo - it is heavenly - I wished it were mine...

So I virtually threw out the mirror on the wall - there is still the small one - and replaced it by a painting. I love doing this kind of things to see how it could feel... What do you think? I also removed the lamp which I found to be a bit out of place - colourwise.

 original image source and with courtesy of 

http://www.livingetc.com

The acrylic painting is called White Wall and belongs to the Reminiscences series. I have shown this painting in quite a few room vignettes - if you check this link.

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Matching Colours again...

I must admit that I really have fun with matching colours. The challenge is to find objects in rooms which repeat or complement a certain colour. As I can do this only virtually I never can be sure whether you see the same as I do colourwise, depending on the value settings of your monitor. Never mind...

The painting shown here belongs to the series Reminiscenes - I have written about it here . The fun part is that these paintings are very colourful and fit into many interiors, be it modern, classic, romantic or any other style. I find they can really brighten up the day and change a bad mood to the better. The important point is to mount them in a complementing frame (which I have done here virtually again) and then place them into the right context:

 original image source and with courtesy of 

http://www.livingetc.com

"Amarillo"
(from the Reminiscences series)

26" x 18", acrylic

©Petra Voegtle

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Living with white Interior and a little Colour Intrusion

What makes people want to live in a completely white interior I ask myself? Is it the longing for the pure per se or is it rather a trend thing or lack of inspiration or...? I really don't know but I find it a bit creepy. It somehow reminds me of hospitals, of sterilized environment, of OP rooms (as they were equipped in the past) and of people who always want to have everything under control. Am I so wrong?

I love light rooms because I live in a country where the sun is rare. Often the weather is turning the sky into something undefinably grey and your longing for sunlight becomes an obsession. So the only chance to fill your heart with a bit of lightness is to keep your rooms light. But white without some colour infusion is not the right recipe.

On a white background you can see each little spot, each little im-perfection, each little fluff. You cannot leave kids alone in a white room, not to speak of pets and when your grand-pa decides to eat chips while watching an old film you will inevitably find the crumbs on your perfect white fluffy carpet... So not a place to really live in?

So what could happen if you just add a little colour to your white interior would be this example (of course you would still have the crumbs on your carpet but...):

(sorry - lost the original image source)

The acrylic painting belongs to the Reminiscences series, a painting series, that was created from my photo documentary about the Olympic Student Village in Munich, that has been torn down 2 years ago in order to be re-constructed.

"Blue Door"
(from the Reminiscences series)

26" x 18", acrylic

©Petra Voegtle

In order to create a kind of memorial for the beautiful and often funnily painted walls which are now all lost I took hundreds of photos from the village. But this was not enough for me - I also decided to create a painting series from the most impressive and beautiful parts i.e. walls, doors and windows. The peeling paints and especially the marks all the vines left on the plaster created wonderful patterns and structures. There is an extra photo series only about these wall motifs which you will find here.

More about the painting itself and the whole series you can find under this link .

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Surprise in the Hallway

From the interior design point of view this hallway really does not offer too much for the eye to see - the place is simply too narrow to fill it with "stuff". But white walls and white wooden floors offer some alternatives of course - there are alway possibilities for an eyecatcher.

So what would you say if - let's assume this small and narrow corridor is on the second floor of a house and while you are climbing up the stairs - your view goes directly to this wall with that drawing of a sardonic face? Would you feel surprise? A bit? I suppose so and that would be the intention. HA!

 original image source and with courtesy of 

http://www.livingetc.com

This drawing belongs to a series about the 7 Deadly Sins (although I have only finished 3 of them so far but it is planned to become a series of 7 drawings).

The pencil drawings of the "Deadly Sins" (on 30 gr Chinese Wenzhou paper) are quite large and therefore handled like scrolls. They are backed with a thin pongé silk, mounted on silk/paper scrolls (painted or dyed silk backed with painted Chinese Wenzhou paper) and finally hung on hand made wooden dowels, coated with acrylic lacquer (several layers) which are removable for easier storage etc.

If you would like to see the other drawings check this link.

 "Envy"
43" x 27"/58" x 32", drawing mounted on silk
©Petra Voegtle

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FINDS: More than just Pottery from Etsy....

Here is another find from Etsy:  works from the Clay Studio by Heather Knight. 
Heather creates tiles - tiles which are beautiful little sculptures, inspired by the flora and fauna of the oceans, by creatures which live in an area that might never be seen by you but are so beautiful in their forms and patterns that they became the inspirations of a ceramic artist.

These tiles are not just meant to cover the wall of your bathroom or kitchen, these tiles are unique artworks, very fragile and delicate. But Heather does not only create tiles but also bowls, vases and more, equally inspired by the creatures of our planet...

In an interview she said: "...my inspiration comes mainly from textures and forms I find on my visits to the beach, or walks in the woods, and sometimes I find really cool stuff on city sidewalks..."

And now visit her studio on Etsy:

all images with courtesy of Heather Knight

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You think Quilts are out? Never....

Do you honestly believe that a quilt couldn't make it into a well designed big hallway? Why? Because you think a quilt belongs on a bed? Not so!
In my last post I was showing a very special art quilt with an exotic flair and motif. This time I chose something with a motif that should be familiar - Cygnes (Swans). I prefer the French name because it sounds much more delicate, more appropriate for those beautiful birds.

Would this beautiful huge entry hall not be predestined for a large art piece such as this hand stitched silk quilt? And would the grand piano in this place not be the perfect complementary object as if made for each other?

The original painting is certainly making a point but an art quilt would be a real eyecatcher - wouldn't it? Something that not everybody has on the wall.

The art quilt was made from silk, hand stitched with silk and finally painted. It is an hommage to one of the most beautiful birds on our planet, a bird that stands for grace, elegance, innocence and love:

"Cygnes"

76" x 54" silk art quilt

©Petra Voegtle

This wall hanging has been part of a project called “Piecing a Quilt of Life” an international project dedicated to empowering senior women by recognizing their creative abilities by Fiber Artist Dottie Moore in Rock Hill, South Carolina. It was part of an exhibition in the Rock Hill Museum for nearly 8 months and was featured on TV in the HGTV channel. More links...

A Bathroom with a mysterious Landscape

I love mysteries. I love mystery stories, I love mysterious people and I absolutely love mysterious landscapes. I love to explore caves, gorges and all those places where you don't know what you can expect turning around the next corner. It is exiting, it is food for inspiration, it is a source for dreams of another world. What would our lives be without mysteries and dreams?

I am especially fascinated by stalactite caves. They are truly mysterious and your phantasies can go berserk when you look at those glitzy stalactites and stalacmites, the forms and patterns they create, sometimes looking like sculptures of humans or aninmals, sometimes filigree like crotcheted lace even in different colours depending on the minerals they contain. A natural miracle and mystery. Beautiful beyond any words.

This is how Mother Nature designs her interior:

all images are from ARGE Höhle & Karst Grabenstetten e.V.

And this is my humble example of re-creating a landscape from below the surface on silk:

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

And in which interior design would I place this painting? F.e. in this bathroom where this painting would certainly add a mystic touch. Imagine you relax in your bathtub after a long working day and you dream of landscapes which do not seem to be on this world...

(unfortunately the original image source got lost...I apologize)

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Chocolate Colours in the Bedroom...

This is a wonderfully simple setting in a bedroom with the colours of the earth. It is far from being boring - instead it is calming and peaceful. I feel though that there is something missing on this dark wall, a focal point. So I thought I have the perfect painting for this bedroom: Ricefields at Dawn from the Magic Landscapes series.

original image source and with courtesy of 

http://www.livingetc.com

"Ricefields at Dawn"

(from the Magic Landscapes series) 
40" x 21", silk
©Petra Voegtle

The painting reflects all colours as shown in above image. It has been painted on silk and additionally stitched with silk thread in order to add texture.
The motif has been inspired by the many rice terraces you can find in southeast Asia which look absolutely awsome in the early morning light when the air is still full of moisture from the night.

You can find other vignettes with this painting here and here.

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OFF-TOPIC: Climate Change - nothing is static

These days subject #1 is Climate Change. But the explanations of science and rainbow press are equally ridiculous. As if mankind could influence any global changes - ha.
Changes on this planet occur continuously - it is necessary for the universal balance, to keep the planet living. Nothing on earth is static. Climate changes are a necessary element of these changes.

While man certainly has an influence on his nearer environment, pollution of air, land and sea, on the animals and their wellbeing, on plants etc. and while this certainly has an impact on micro climates of cities and adjacent country he has no influence on global climate changes. I do not want to go into details though. It is a matter of common sense.

The melting of the ice caps in the artic region will have some major impact on the whole planet but can we do anything about it? I don't think so. The outcry about this is as ridiculous as about many other issues. This has occured several times in the history of our earth, long before man started to change his environment.

Has anyone ever thought about this being necessary and that if we try to intervene in nature's laws and actions - which we btw mostly still do not understand - we might end up in a chaos? Plants and animals and even man will disappear eventually from certain areas but there will be new ones, new land, new species - continuously. Evolution will never stop.This can be painful but we cannot and should not intervene. What sense does it make to save certain species artificially when the habitat has been lost? Shall we keep animals in zoos only after we have "civilized" all wild land, plastered it with cities? This cannot be the meaning of life and I definitely don't want to live in a world such as that.

We should enjoy the beauties of this world, protect it from greed and overpopulation which is the real scourge of humanity as long as we are here. The secrets of mother nature will never be revealed - we can only comprehend little bits and pieces but never the whole.

This is the reason why I am creating art, beautiful objects which only show a fraction of what exists.This silk scroll has been inspired by the fantastic landscapes you can still find in arctic regions where the ice is carved by mother nature...

"Iceworld"
79" x 25", silk scroll

©Petra Voegtle

If you would like to know more about the "making of" of this silk scroll, please check this link.

And if you would like to see the impact of this scroll on the wall, here are some examples:

interior1, interior2, interior3

This wallhanging was juried into the members show of the Woman Made Gallery in Chicago in 2006.

Follwoing image is and example how this very large scroll could look in a frame:

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What a romantic little Bedroom in white!

You might already have noticed that I am a fan of bedrooms. Bedrooms are in my opinion those rooms where we might not spend most of our time but where we need the feeling of peace and comfort most in order to have a wonderful relaxing sleep. And who could deny that this gorgeous sweet little bedroom is perfect for romance and love.

The acrylic painting that I added to the wall - just to have a little art piece in this room - is called White Wall - isn't it a nice coincidence - and part of the Reminiscences series. And reminiscences one might have in this room, reminiscences of wonderful moments, a lost love, a magnificent holiday or of a dream.
You can read more about the painting here.

original image source from My Home Ideas

"White Wall"
(from the Reminiscences series)
26" x 18", acrylic on cotton
©Petra Voegtle
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Light as a Feather...

I apologize for not posting much these days but I was (and still am) very busy working on a new painting series. So you may understand that I need to set priorities. As much as I love blogging and looking for new opportunities to show you what wonderful interiors can be found out there - sometimes not everyhing you like to do is manageable any more and I wished I had another pair of hands and more than 24 hours a day.

The painting here is the latest that I finished and I thought I show you two beautiful environments where the very same painting looks completely different, depending on frame and surrounding colours: in the very light room it looks dreamlike, with a touch of romance, in the dark room the painting serves as a kind of optical brightener, giving the elegant room a more cheerful touch.

As I already said the painting is the startup of a new series about one of my favourite subjects: pigeons (finally). It is called Contemplation on a Feather. As you may know I am writing a documentary and diary about a feral pigeon family who lives on my balcony since nearly 2 years now. This diary contains many stories and photos about pigeons, who are extremely underestimated and misjudged. These birds are highly intelligent, make very funny companions and are absolutely amiable. If only more people would realize how special these birds are. Maybe you will change your mind too if you start reading my blog Pigeon Tales. You will learn a lot of things you probably did not know before.

If you would like to see more details of the painting please use this link.

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

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

Contemplation on a Feather
(from the Pigeons series)
18" x 26" acrylic
©Petra Voegtle
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The painting looks very different depending on the frame it is mounted in. This is just an example I like very much because it looks so romantic...

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Breaking the Order

You may have seen this perfectly styled room probably a couple of times. It has been published in various magazines. I love the composition, the clean graphical lines, it's light and order. Everything seems to be at the right place. And that's my problem with this room.
For me it looks like the showroom in an extravagant designer store and I am missing the personal touch - that kind of touch that shows me that someone is actually living here.

So if this were my room I would go and break up the order, add something personal, add a painting that contains movement and adds life - just as this silk painting Tassili I, inspired by the cave paintings and engravings that have been found in the Algerian desert. Isn't this a humorous oxymoron??

If you want to know more about the painting check this link

I apologize - cannot find the original image source

Tassili I
(from the Magic Symbols series)
40" x 13" silk
©Petra Voegtle

Living Room in white - not quite...

Rooms in white have something innocent, virginal, pure and clean. But his does not mean that they must be impersonal, cold and repellant. On the contrary. Depending on accessories and interior design in total these rooms can be full of charme, cosy and inviting to live in - such as this room which I really like very much.

The main contribution to ease and comfort here is certainly the wonderful wooden floor that has been kept in a chalklike finish and the breathtakingly beautiful crystal candelabras. Not to mention the slipcovered furniture that adds a lot to the "feeling at home".

If this were my room I would add some plants to give it a bit more of a sun room and of course I would add some art - just like this silk carving Bamboo piece.

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

The silk carving Bamboo belongs to the Hawaiian Symbols series. It has been sculptured from one single piece of silk with a technique that I developed further from the trapunto techniques, known in classical quilting. If you would like to see more details please see this link.

"Bamboo"
(from the Hawaiian Symbols Series)
59" x 15", silk carving
©Petra Voegtle
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