[HANGING TOUGH] Exhibition A

Do you love art?  Do you have a lot of blank wall space to fill?  Do you have a ton of cash lying around that you can blow on non-essentials like paintings instead of essentials like bread, milk, and deoderant (call me)? 

Then Exhibition A is for you!

Exhibition A is a new members-only website that sells limited editions of artwork by contemporary artists. Each week, they debut a new original piece that's up for grabs for a limited amount of time. 

It's Gilt Group for Art. 

Registration is free, so you have no reason not to check it out.  

DO IT.

[HANGING TOUGH] Crate & Barrel's "Vein of Truth" Print

Got the new Crate & Barrel Spring catalog the other day and as usual, it was a major snoozefest.

The only thing in there worth noting was Allison Wickey's "Vein of Truth" print. 

For $449, it ain't cheap but it's kind of pretty, right?

Click for an enlarged photo.

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[HANGING TOUGH] Exploding Dog Prints

Exploding Dog is the brainchild of artist Sam Brown, where readers submit titles and he creates drawings based on them.  This is a project that's 10 years in the making, and what continually blows my mind about this site is how titles submitted by strangers connect together so seamlessly.  If you read them in succession, you'd think that they were written by one person. 

They're quirky and odd as they are hopeful and quietly adorable. 

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[HANGIN' TOUGH] 20X200

So, it's come to your attention that you're too old for movie posters (even if they're framed!), but you don't have the cash to drop on a legit piece of art?

No problemo.

The folks over at 20X200 are serving up their fair share of that shit every week. 

The story is that they release limited edition prints from artists at various price points ranging from $20 to $2000. They claim that it's "art for everyone," and I have to agree.  

Let's check out a sampling of their selection...

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[HANGING TOUGH] DNA11 Fingerprint Portraits

Maybe you might think that blowing up your actual fingerprints into a framed painting that you hang on your wall is a tad creepy, but I think it's fucking rad as hell.

DNA11 is a company that will take your actual fingerprints and turn them into paintings for $190.  You choose the size and color you want, they mail you a kit, you mail your fingerprints back, and BAM—your own personal work of art.

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[COOL OR NOT COOL?] Oyster Hanging Strands from West Elm

Usually, I have so many decided opinions that I leave everyone around me wishing that they didn't have ears. 

HOWEVER, I'm posting this edition of "Cool or Not Cool" because I really can't decide how I feel about these Oyster Hanging Strands from West Elm.

The description says they're perfect for "bringing the beach indoors," and we know how I feel about that, so I'm leaning more towards "not cool."

I mean, really—if you can answer the question, "Does this look like something Ariel from The Little Mermaid would use to decorate?" with a resounding "YES!" then you should probably leave it out of your home and back on the beach.

But after seeing them placed in a room, I'm undecided.  

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[HANGING TOUGH] Louella Press Prints

Hanging Tough! Where we feature cool shit you can hang on your walls—from original paintings from young artists to crazy tapestries that we find on some sketchy site that outsources from India, we want to ensure that your walls will never go bare.

Celebrate your city pride with these cool (and at $32, crazy affordable!) prints from Etsy shop, Louella Prints. 

Admittedly, they've got some douchey, preachy prints that I can't get behind (I will NOT ever hang prints that say "Be Nice and "Say Please" anywhere in my home— EVER), but the ones that are location-specific are pretty awesome. 

People who are into typography as art—rejoice!

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[HANGING TOUGH] Meral Akyuz

Hanging Tough is a recurring series where we feature cool shit you can hang on your walls—from original paintings from young artists to crazy tapestries that we find on some sketchy site that outsources from India, we want to ensure that your walls will never go bare.

Meral Akyuz, a painter represented by the Agora Gallery in New York, uses mixed media to create incredibly intricate and layered pieces.

I'm not trying to make crazy comparisons here, but the use of color and the linear nature of the pieces remind me of Rauschenberg, and I love me some Rauschenberg.

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