when i think of the buzzzzz word, "swarm,"
what immediately comes to mind
is the tragic scene from the surprisingly heartbreaking film,
my girl (1991), when thomas j bravely goes back into
the woods to retrieve his bestfriend, vada's lost mood ring
only to find himself caught in
and meet his fateful end in
..you guessed it..
a vicious {swarm} of bees!!
but unlike me,
(who tends to draw conclusions about life based
on something i have seen in a movie, book, or on tv),
amsterdam based artist,
leslie oschmann,
chose to sell her handcrafted, one of a kind reclaimed furniture pieces
under the business name,
with the simple explanation, that,
"i like things in masses because they look more appealing."
images found here.
as the former visual director for the
beautifully merchandised, visually delicious store,
which not only sells gorgeous clothing,
but rather, a gorgeous lifestyle,
leslie knows a thing or two
about how to display pieces and make them sell.
what she was missing, though,
was the tactile quality of her craft,
the making of things,
and
for this reason,
when the opportunity arose
to pick up and move from the states to amsterdam,
she took it, telling the uk daily telegraph,
"markets in holland and belgium offer very different things than those in the US,and suddenly a whole new supply base opened for me. the dutch govenment is very supportive of artists and designers, helping them establish studios and even holding auctions of their work.’
well, what she does, (and she does well)
is to scour the flea markets and antique shops of amsterdam,
using her expert eye to spot diamonds in the rough:
dutch, french and belgian antiques that she can
bring back to her studio, sand down,
and using her own hand painted canvases,
(which usually depict flowers or landscapes)
carefully and craftily applies them using high polish clear lacquer
to her found objects.
with her unique ability to skillfully manipulates materials,
applying linen to wood and metal,
oil painting onto silk, stitching onto canvas,
and surprises viewers with her whimsical flair
for mixing mediums and textures of all kinds,
leslie oschmann has definitely found a way
(in this recession, when recycling is key)
to make the old, new again.
she just recently had an exhibit at anthropologie in
new york's rockefeller plaza store,
and was selling her pieces exclusively
if anyone knows where i can get my hands
on one of her pretty pieces,
please, let me know!
or maybe i can take a trip to amsterdam?
do you think a chair will fit comfortably in my carry on?
You rock!
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