In this vibrant series, brilliant artist and photographer Carl Kleiner explores the endlessly alluring golden ratio. Upon first glance, it is easy to think these are computer generated images but “Golden Ratio & Friends” is actually a set of still-life photographs crafted in paper. Fantastic colour palettes, bold patterns, the beauty of the golden ratio – Carl never ceases to amaze me with his talent! (see the whole series here)

(spotted in it’s nice that magazine, issue #6)

It’s hard not to like Wobbly Plates by ceramics designer Brigitte Bouquet. That texture is created with lace and the results are beautiful. I love those thick organic edges. Wobbly Plates is a collection of platters, plates and bowls but I think these condiment bowls are my favourite. A little bit of magic you can add to an all white dinner plate! I wouldn’t mind the whole colour spectrum…

(to buy your own wobbly plates, go here)

These images are from a couple of years ago but they had such jaw-dropping effects on me yesterday when I saw them for the first time, I knew I had to share! Tham & Videgård Arkitekter re-imagined this traditional Art Nouveau apartment in Stockholm in the most striking of ways. The entire space features dramatic oversized and multicoloured parquet flooring inspired by the seasonally changing colours of adjacent Humlegården Park “from winter grey and black to summertime bright and deep green, to orange, red and yellow in autumn”. I don’t think it would be humanly possible to have a bad day in this apartment. Colour therapy meets architecture? It is definitely a feat of colour mixing and pattern. My personal favourite are the rooms with a neon orange, hot pink and black hues. Do you think you could live in a space this uniquely dazzling? At the very least, this apartment has inspired me to paint some doorways in vibrant colours!

(photographs by Åke E:son Lindman; spotted on yatzer and fine little home)

I am a longtime fan of Spanish artist and designer Ana Montiel. She has a dreamy eye for colour and exquisite use of pattern. When visiting Art Hound yesterday, I was reminded of Ana’s many talents and upon taking a closer look at her portfolio, fell in love with the Faux Crystals drawing series. A beautiful vision of the intricate details and texture in crystals as well as their many vibrant hues. I wouldn’t mind one (or seven) of these prints for my walls!

Architect Armin Blasbichler’s home in Northern Italy has a magnificent door that features little transparent colour swatches for every hue seen in the nature surrounding the house. I love the handwritten names of flowers, trees and other natural Italian colour sources. As the light changes throughout the day, this door must create one stunning light show after another. How do you get anything done when your home has something so full of wonder? See the rest of Armin’s home here.

Thanks for the inspiration thirdpearl!

(photography by ingrid heiss via design*sponge)

Look up “gorgeous” in the dictionary and I imagine you will find these Stars by Seb Lester prints (right next to a photo of George Clooney of course.) Sparkling gold ink screen printed by hand on royal or midnight blue paper, the dreamy Van Gogh quote is beautiful from a distance. But, upon closer look, the word stunning doesn’t seem to do justice to Seb’s typography made up of ‘hundreds of thousands of tiny stars’. Limited editions of 100 prints, both colours are sold out which kind of shows that you should never drag your feet when buying art! I will dull the pain by dreaming of a second edition…

(photographs via keep calm gallery)

The On This Day Calendar looks like a geometry and rainbow-happy wall calendar with room for regular ol’ reminders but magic lurks among those handsome shapes. Each day features a black, heat-sensitive square that reveals a historical fact when touched. Once the square cools, the trivia fades away. I’m pretty sure this would brighten any morning and probably make you the hit of the office (if you don’t mind line-ups to fondle your calendar that is…)

(images via luckies)

I spotted a painting by Santiago Salvador on design for mankind and was instantly smitten. I had to find out more about this intriguing artist. Upon my arrival at Santiago’s Flickr page, I think my head exploded with hue happiness. Holy sublime use of colour and pattern! Santiago has many handsome pieces but it is the collections of vibrant people that I am in love with. I would love to hang that gradient of blue people on my wall. I can’t seem to find much information on Santiago but I’m hoping to dig around and learn more. His fantastic eye for pattern, unique style and exquisite use of a hues makes Santiago one colourful and intriguing artist to watch…

(photographs via santiago salvador)

Glittering sequins displays in Iceland. I don’t think a string of words has ever made me so happy! Danish/Czech artist Theresa Himmer created these graffiti-like sequin installations in Reykjavik, Iceland. The pieces, inspired by a glacier, volcano and waterfall, add a layer of sparkling dimension to city walls while highlighting the interplay of nature and urban life. The movement of the sequins mimic the beauty of ice, lava and water while recalling “how landscapes respond to changes in wind and light”. Oh and did I mention they are insanely, jaw-droppingly gorgeous? My list of favourite pieces of art ever just got a new addition!

(p.s. for more photographs of beautiful Iceland, take a look at my previous post)

(photography by gunnar tór nilsen and kristinn magnússon; spotted on yatzer)

I spotted these photographs on the Flickr page of very talented stylist and photographer Imke Klee and was instantly fascinated by the combination of crumpled paper towel texture and vibrant pigment hues. That circular palette of pigment piles is a stunner too. Not sure if this is the start of a bigger project by Imke but I sure hope so! (p.s. take a peek at my Holi post for more colourful powder happiness)

How beautiful are these slip-cast earthenware tiles by industrial designer Kristina Gerig? It appears they are an exploration project at the moment but I am really hoping they are sold to the general public one day. The chevron shape tiles tessellate in three different ways, creating striking texture and indefinite patterns of white and bright colour. What a gorgeous, one of a kind bathroom or kitchen you could create!

(photographs via kristina gerig; spotted on yellow trace’s pinterest)

As you may already know, I love when magic can be found in the seemingly boring, everyday items and tasks that surround us. That’s why I’m rather fascinated with the work of artist and photographer Alastair Levy. From covering one side of an oak plank with highlighter ink to create a beautiful pink glow when leaned up against a white wall to organizing ballpoint pens into a bold triangle pattern, Alastair is constantly re-imagining and injecting colour into the everyday. Just look at the top right image of his piece ‘Keep Going’. A modern circle of colourful cubes created with what? The peeled off stickers of a Rubik’s Cube. Now that’s re-imagining things!

(photographs via alastair levy and its nice that)

Is there a blog somewhere devoted to Anthropologie windows and displays? If not, there should be! The creativity, attention to detail and sheer awesomeness of Anthropologie store displays never ceases to amaze me. It is refreshing and inspiring to see a company make design and craftsmanship by hand a priority. Yep, “Antropologie window designer” is definitely one of my dream jobs. I particularly love the focus on using recycled items. Case in point? The fantastic origami-inspired Summer 2011 windows created with old envelopes or the bold geometry of colourfully painted recycled planks. Anthropologie’s Spring 2011 windows were created with the over five million corks collected at stores. The gorgeous displays brought attention to the Cork Forest Conservation Alliance, recycling and Earth Day. Bottle caps, wire hangers, clothes pins – one person’s trash is another person’s stunning window by Anthropologie! The last photo shown is one I snapped at the Rockefeller Centre location in New York. Even sale jewellery has a background of gorgeous roses made with recycled paper. This post could honestly include hundreds of photos showcasing the brilliance of Anthropologie window display designers but I had to cut myself off! They are true creative and colour heroes. Perhaps there needs to be a ‘part two’ devoted to this topic?

(most photographs via anthropologie+you as well as lauren love, square one studio, katy elliott, chloé douglas, the design process, playstudio1801, platinum blonde life, mimi and caca, dustysusan, mday212, mjc, the design process & chloé douglas)

Designers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec have collaborated with Danish textile company Kvadrat to create ‘Textile Field’ – an installation of vibrant blue and green foam rectangles. Part of the London Design Festival, the fascinating structure will stretch 30 meters long and 8 meters wide in Victoria and Albert Museum’s Raphael Gallery. The field of textiles is truly interactive and is meant to be walked on, sat on or laid on. The Raphael Gallery houses some of the oldest and most important pieces of Renaissance art in the world so this modern installation will create a striking juxtaposition. Oh and the colour! What a feast for the eyes. The piece will debut on September 15, 2011 as the festival opens. Hoping to post some photos of the real thing when it appears. Anyone fancy a trip to London to see a room of spectacular colour?

(via designboom; photographs via kvadrat)

Are these beautiful abstract paintings by a colour-loving modern artist? Nope. They are photographs of alcohol! Florida State University research scientist Michael Davidson had the intriguing idea of shining polarized light through crystallizing drinks on lab slides and using his old-fashion 35mm camera to take a photograph of the alcohol under a microscope. This process magnified the drink over a 1000 times and the results are spectacular. The brainchild has now become a merchandise mecca called BevShots that uses the photographs to make high-quality art, scarves and so forth. The colourful patterns translate beautifully to fabric, don’t you think? Incredible to think that our favourite cocktails are made up of such insane colour.

(thanks for the inspiration Taylor!)

(alcohol shown from top: rosé, tequila, irish pale lager, gin, margarita, white russian, scotch, black russian, cola)
(photographs via time magazine and bevshots)

A couple of months ago, I posted about brilliant studio Maricor Maricar being one my ‘colour heros’. Their stunning embroidery typography is what made me fall in love with the art of embroidery and its modern interpretations. As a true creative and colour inspiration, the note I got from Maricor Maricar this morning was a thrill. The studio just finished a new commissioned embroidery project based on a Rolling Stone lyric and, as always, the large piece (40 cm x 40 cm) is an absolutely gorgeous feat of colour and typography. Maricor (one half of the twin-sized studio) emailed me to say that my post on Cinque Terre, Italy inspired the colour palette of the artwork. Say what? First off, it is a thrilling to know that I have actual colour heros visiting plenty of colour but the thought that my little colourful nook on the web helped inspire work this beautiful is just about the best news ever. Take a look at the Maricor Maricar blog for more background on the project and Maricor’s own memories of her travels to Riomaggiore, one of the beautiful towns of Cinque Terre. The studio’s process, from sketch to thread box, is fascinating. Thank you for the email Maricor. I can safely say it made my month. Your studio is a huge inspiration and I can’t wait to see what you come up with next!

(cinque terre photograph by robert crum)