'Too Bad, So Sad, Maybe Next Birth' is comprised of lush paintings filled with surreal details, earthly textures, and a recurring blue-faced character.
Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Through Surreal Paintings, Shyama Golden Reincarnates a Mythic Narrative appeared first on Colossal.
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A glass mosaic covering 600 square feet of the 2nd Street entrance to the 7 train in Grand Central Station greets commuters with a bold, cosmic map.
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West’s expansive new installation invites viewers to revel in color and brightness.
Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Get ‘H.A.P.P.Y’ with Liz West’s Immersive Installation Made of More Than 700 Colorful Discs appeared first on Colossal.
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Glovinsky channels literary reflections on communing with nature.
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The expansive show parses cultural narratives around the art form, spotlighting the impact of quilting across generations and geography.
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"Detroiters, when we step outside, we step outside. We want people to see it. We want people to see us," Massey says.
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Shrouded in dainty, beaded veils or entwined with botanicals, Florence Solis' protagonists are bound and concealed.
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"I am not singular in this work; I am simply building on a tradition that was passed down through many generations before me, and I can only hope that I am able to inspire future generations to continue it," the artist says.
Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Reviving an Ancestral Hawaiian Tradition, Lehuauakea Reimagines Kapa in Bold Textile Works appeared first on Colossal.
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To help you navigate Chicago's busiest art week, we're sharing the works we're most looking forward to seeing.
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Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 24, 2025 is:
limn \LIM\ verb
Limn is a formal verb most often used especially in literary contexts to mean "to describe or portray," as in "a novel that limns the life of 1930s coastal Louisiana." It can also mean "to outline in clear sharp detail," as in "a tree limned by moonlight," and "to draw or paint on a surface," as in "limning a portrait."
// The documentary limns the community's decades-long transformation.
// We admired every detail of the portrait, gracefully limned by the artist's brush.
"... the story of Ronald Reagan's jelly beans is not simply about his love of a cute candy. It speaks to how he weaned himself from tobacco, judged people's character, and deflected scrutiny. It limns the role of the sugar industry and food marketing. And it demonstrates how food can be a powerful communications tool. Reagan's jelly beans sent a message to voters: 'I like the same food you do, so vote for me.'" — Alex Prud’homme, Dinner with the President: Food, Politics, and a History of Breaking Bread at the White House, 2023
Did you know?
Limn is a word with lustrous origins, tracing ultimately to the Latin verb illuminare, meaning "to illuminate." Its use in English dates back to the Middle Ages, when it was used for the action of illuminating (that is, decorating) medieval manuscripts with gold, silver, or brilliant colors. William Shakespeare extended the term to painting in his poem "Venus and Adonis": "Look when a painter would surpass the life / In limning out a well-proportioned steed …" Over time, limn gained a sense synonymous with delineate meaning "to outline in clear sharp detail" before broadening further to mean "to describe or portray." Such limning is often accomplished by words, but not always: actors are often said to limn their characters through their portrayals, while musicians (or their instruments) may limn emotions with the sounds they make.