Inspiring Iceland

whew! i have made it back home from iceland (sadly, as i wish i didn't want to) and let me just say it was beyond inspiring. iceland had been my #1 on my travel "wish list" for a very long time. this actually means a lot, because i tend to have "travel ADD" and quickly get distracted when i find an amazing destination that i want to add to the top of my list. but no, not with iceland. i had applied for a travel fellowship to go there through my school and being a poor college student, could never find the means to go. luckily, i was able to go now that i graduated from such an institution, and made my way over to the island of fire and ice after several years (and months of more detailed road planning). my boyfriend and i rented a car and drove around the entire country, taking a total of 5 very long, yet very very very visually stimulating - to say the least - days. driving through mountains, under fjords, past waterfalls and over moss-covered lava fields our brains took in every detail and our camera batteries wore out. the last 5 days  we stayed in reykjavik and explored the capital by eating traditional icelandic food, including puffin and whale, spending a day trip to the westman islands and climbing a volcano that was still warm and meeting icelanders who are perhaps the most genuine people i've met so far.

of course i took about 1,900 pictures and tons of video which i will be posting more of. these are some of my favorite/most inspiring ones. i would say that iceland has far surpassed my expectations and both of us want to go back already! such an incredible amazing country...

i want to be here right now

found this picture on flickr of skogafoss, iceland. new favorite picture of iceland... for right now. soooo amazing.

Yang Yongliang: Artificial Wonderland

Taking from the pictorial tradition of Chinese Shanshui ink paintings, photographer Yang Yongliang turns his photographs of Chinese construction and cityscapes into eerie mystical landscapes that mesh the old with the possible future. Incredibly beautiful!

erupting volcano

Iceland, Eyjafjallajökull - May 1st and 2nd, 2010 from Sean Stiegemeier on Vimeo.

iceland embroidery

these are recent works that i completed for the juried fellowship exhibition at my school. i proposed to travel to iceland this summer to study the landscape for my work. each image is inspired by specific locations in iceland known for their stunning landscape that i had planned to travel to. i dyed the warped threads, hand wove the fabric and embroidered on the surface. the phrase "pad kallar" means "it calls" in icelandic. i know the images are terrible, so bare with me...the color washed out a lot, i swear they are actually more brilliant than this!

hawlings have arrived!

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the franklin institute's hawk nest of the newly hatched chicks and parents are sooo cute!

Jim Thorpe & Beltzville Lake

Caution: Hot

I find these pictures if cooling and hot lava particularly beautiful yet gross, but that's really the best kind of beautiful!

wish you were here: new zealand

new zealand, a place that has been at the top of my list for ages, will never leave it's cozy spot of number... 3. i mean, who doesn't want to go to the "adventure capital of the world" or where they shot Lord of the Rings? that makes seychelles number 4 i'd have to say ( i posted it last week?) these are some shots of the other island of fire and ice from National Geographic, i especially love the one below (that one for some reason really makes me want to go there).

it would be a great place to study nature and natural patterns. it's full of beautiful rock formations, odd creatures, and intricate maori art objects. again... some day kathleen, some day...

wish you were here: seychelles

more like "i wish i was there." a few years ago i had an awesome calendar and for one month it was a picture of seychelles, the little nation of islands in the indian ocean, off madagascar and i was instantly mesmerized. the rocks there are what really captured my interest, they are so sculptural and the water in the picture was almost ethereal, it was out of this world. 




                                                                                     one day, kathleen, one day...

trying out a terrarium

terrible pictures, i know. not a lot of light in my room for this one and the flash made it look even worse. i've been having a little fascination with terrariums lately and i was at michael's today so i'd thought i'd give one a try. i really like the apothecary jars so i got one that was relatively cheap, some stones, moss, a little bird's nest and some fake bird eggs. i really wanted a little plant in there (because that's the point of a terrarium) but this jar is a little too small for one. hopefully i can get one in there soon enough. but i think it will do for now.

backyard flowers

hmmm, could they actually be a source of inspiration for a print or woven design? maybe, i mean they are a little more like wildflowers, we haven't been taking care of them as much as we used to because my mom and her financee have been "redoing and rearranging" the house inside and out, trying to give it a makeover. apparently we are putting in a small coy pond, which would be nice, but i think it's too small for the fish. anyway, i'd thought i would share some pictures of the "nice" flowers in our backyard.

Inspiration: Tricia Guild

these pictures are from the book, Tricia Guild: Inspiration and are just the tip of the iceberg. tricia guild is a textile designer and her book is full of excellent pictures and great ideas for projects and designs.