Garden Nets

My Mum always says you can judge the quality of a restaurant on the cleanliness of it's curtains, judging on the condition of these I would eat at this gardeners table any day. I spotted them on a visit to some open gardens in Hampshire a few weekends ago. These folks had the thrifty idea to use their old net curtains to protect their fruit bushes from greedy birds, I think they were blissfully unaware of the art installation they had created .

Illustrated book of the Week : Le Vodou un art de vivre

I discovered this amazing catalogue at a brocante in Paris. It comes from a swiss exhibition of Haitian voodoo objects, the pieces are arresting, alarming, intriguing, and full of dark creativity.

Flag It !

I bought this collection of cardboard flags at the 'grande bradderie de Lille' in September. I was seduced by their curious pop art aesthetic, they are mini pop tableaux in the tradition of warhols' tins of soup and brillo pad boxes. As a little new years quiz see if you can name all 11 counties, to help you out the are all European or close neighbors (answers at the bottom of this post.

countries from top to bottom, UK, France, Turkey, Germany, The Netherlands, Italy, Sweden, Austria,Greece, Ireland, Denmark

Tons of Tins

Our new roving reporter, Steve Sorrell, just sent us this delightful collection of receptacles. He tells us the story...

"It all started with a text message on a damp gloomy afternoon. A house clearance friend of ours was having a bit of a clear out and wondered if we would be interested in buying a few bits and pieces?

On past experience we knew that he'd have one or two interesting things so the following day we hot footed it over to his house. The first thing he produced was two rather large cardboard boxes of old tins; they looked promising, so we bought them without really bothering to inspect the contents. It wasn't until we arrived home and started to unpack them that we realised just how wonderful they all were.

Each one is a minor work of art. The type, the artwork and the colours are just beautiful. Who could resist the charms of Zig Zag polish or Boots chest and lung wafers? And as for Dilly Duckling cough pastilles, well...............

Steve and Edele's little collection of tin treasures will be available to purchase for your very own from this Thursday at Spitalfields Antique Market. Hurry! Before Dilly Duckling sells out!

Objets n' Art - Chez Sorrell

Have you ever wondered what would happen if an antiques dealer with artistic leanings married an artist with a penchant for collecting? And they moved to the seaside?

Well, gentle reader, wonder no more.

Regular visitors of this blog will be familiar with the names of Steve and Edele Sorrell as being one of our favorite vendors at Spitalfields Market. Their stall is always guaranteed to be filled with delightful objects, always displayed in a most creative fashion, just waiting to be taken home for a modest fee.

Which is why I was very excited to receive an invitation to visit their home in the charming seaside town of Felpham. To say the least, I was not disappointed.

'Eclectic' is a horribly overused word nowadays, but there really is no other way to describe the Sorrell's taste. Minimalist art sits next to ornate Victoriana, strict Modernist forms live happily next to groovy sixties dolls.

It's a thoroughly personal mix - but one that never looks overwrought or affected.

For me, the star attractions were the two art pieces by Bob and Roberta Smith - a perfect combination of all the things that the Sorrell's love. These pieces take found objects, hand made signs, and a quirky sense of humour and elevate them to a higher level.

With Edele's training as an artist and Steve's love of old things working together, this is as much an artistic installation as a home. It's like a gallery that you can live in - with the art and objects ever changing and evolving. A thoroughly stimulating and inspiring place to visit.

Upholstered Bike

Bi-King

When we visited the world famous Central/St Martins art college degree show a few weeks back there was no that much that caught our curious eyes. The project however clearly stood out for its clever aesthetic and beautiful craftmanship.

The designer Sung Kug Kim describes the project as a 'more enjoyable and artistic way of transformation of everyday product into an art' with which we couldn't agree more. Well done Sung, you brought a smile to our faces.
www.designkug.com

Accidental Sculptures

When is a sculpture not a sculpture?

When it's also a wooden coat hanger from Porte de Vanves 'Puces' in Paris.

Or a test-tube holder from the Jeu de Balle Flea Market Brussels.

Or an amazing kid's chair from the ever-excellent Steve and Edele Sorrell at Spitalfields Antique Market.

I'll never know the anonymous designers who created these beauties, but each of them give me the same thrill that I get from modernist sculpture. Who needs a Brancusi with finds like these?

Happy Birthday Curious Eye

Today is The Curious Eyes' first birthday, in celebration we purchased this Mickey Mouse fireguard panel this morning in Spitalfields Market.

M. Goldstein -The New Curiosity Shop

You've heard the phrase 'One man's trash is another man's treasure'? Well, we at The Curious Eye have a similar saying - 'One man's junk is another man's aesthetically pleasing display object'. Admittedly, it's not quite so catchy, but it gets the point across.

Never was it so true as at M. Goldstein on the Hackney Road. Nathaniel, the shop's owner, is so skilled at finding and displaying 'junk', that it's almost like entering an art gallery. A gallery filled with found objects and discarded curiosities - our idea of fun.

Everything in the shop seems to have a story behind it - from the old display unit for wellington boots to the shopping lists of a 1940's school teacher. There's a lot of history in these objects - making them all the more fascinating and romantic.

Next time you're in Shoreditch, check it out. Definitely a must-see for fans of the esoteric, the quirky and the creative.

Check out mgoldstein.co.uk for more details of this little treasure trove

Transportation

Born on the Streets - Fondation Cartier, Paris

Paris' Fondation Cartier is renowned for it's exciting contemporary art exhibits, and this new one comes in 3 parts. Firstly on the street, outside walls have been set up for 'local' graffiti artists to make their own contribution, as those shown here were doing during my visit last week. Then, inside on the ground floor and outside in the garden, space is given to contemporary artists working with the ethos of graffiti. Finally, the enormous basement is given over to a retrospective of American graffiti, from the early seventies onwards . For me that part was the most intriguing, perhaps partly because it felt like a trip down memory lane with early Eighties video clips like Blondies' Rapture and Malcolm McLarens' Buffalo Girls, and interviews with the earliest of Manhattans' graffiti artists. Definitely a must see if you're in Paris before 29th November.