Opps! Cleaners Paint Over Priceless Art

An Australian council is rueing a decision to send street cleaners into a Melbourne lane after they painted over a priceless stencil of a rat by the celebrated British graffiti artist Banksy.

Melbourne Deputy Lord Mayor Susan Riley last week sent a clean-up team into Hosier Lane, renowned internationally for its colorful street art, to clean up garbage in the graffiti-lined passage after local residents complained.

But the request went awry when the cleaners painted over a Banksy stencil of a rat hanging underneath a parachute and adorning the wall of an old council building. “Unfortunately the contractors were not made aware by us that that was an important piece. It is the nature of graffiti art. It’s very vulnerable to other people’s work,” Council chief executive Kathy Alexander told local radio.

The reclusive Banksy, who is regarded as one of the world’s top street artists, painted several stencils in Melbourne during a 2003 visit. His satirical and distinctive art is often directed at anti-war, cultural and anti-capitalist themes.

Skeleton Sits In For Copenhagen’s Little Mermaid

A skeleton briefly sat in for Copenhagen’s beloved Little Mermaid, who left her spot in the harbour last week for China, the museum behind the April Fool’s prank said.

 

“Copenhagen will be deprived of its Little Mermaid for six months, and we thought we should replace it. It’s April Fools, after all!” Hanne Strager, the head of exhibitions at the Natural History Museum of Denmark, told AFP.

The replacement — which even had a skeleton fish tail — was placed in the same position as the Little Mermaid and sat in her vacant spot for two hours, to the delight of tourists.

“Half of the mermaid was built with a human skeleton, and the other with a swordfish” tail, Strager said.

“Many passers-by thought it was really funny and jumped in front of the mermaid to have their pictures taken,” she added.

Scott Dworkin: The Michaelangelo Of Wood

Meet Scott Dworkin, The Daily Andy’s newest discovery. 

Scott unleashes the magical oasis inside every piece of beautiful and exotic maple, redwood and buckeye burl wood he creates. 

Environmentally and eco-safe, Dworkin’s works of functional art create a sense of peace, harmony, and balance in any home.  Often referred to as “The Michaelangelo of Wood” He releases the inner beauty hidden inside every piece of wood. His collection includes dining room tables, coffee tables and functional art pieces, each one a true work of art. Sculpting each piece individually, Dworkin gets his inspiration from the wood. A true artist, “I become partners with the wood allowing the piece to almost design itself.”

Scott graduated from Rhode Island School of Design with a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Bachelor of Industrial Design.  Designing and creating sculptural boxes since the early nineties in Grover Beach, California, Scott has now moved his love for wood to the East coast creating larger and more Contemporary works of furniture and art.

For more information, or to see samples of Scott’s work be sure to visit Scott Dworkin Designs or check him out at the Architectural Digest Home Design Show – Booth# M169 - March 18-21, 2010, Pier 94, New York City.

New Jersey Police Order Nude Snow Sculpture Covered

Police in New Jersey ordered a snow sculpture modeled on the famous nude Venus de Milo to be covered up after a neighbor complained, the artist said.

Elisa Gonzalez, 44, carved the ancient Greek-style torso from snow on her front lawn in Rahway and says her work was initially a hit.

“It looked very beautiful,” she said. “We got a lot of attention from people in the neighborhood. Some of them got out and took pictures and spoke to us.”

One neighbor clearly felt the snow nude — headless, armless, and cut off above the knees — was too hot.

“We had a visit from the local police who told us that a neighbor had complained about the statue and we needed to cover it up or knock it down,” Gonzalez said. “We didn’t want to have any problem with the police so we covered it up.”

The original Venus de Milo, which is housed in Paris’ Louvre museum, depicts a nude woman. She also is without arms, although her head is intact.

Puppet Cleavage A No-No In Colorado

Puppet cleavage has been ruled out for advertising posters in Colorado Springs bus shelters. Lamar Advertising rejected posters for a touring production of the Broadway show “Avenue Q” because they show the cleavage of a fuzzy pink puppet.

Lamar account executive Jeff Moore says the company takes a conservative approach in Colorado Springs. The city is known for its political conservatism, and some conservative Christian groups have headquarters in the city.

The poster has been replaced by one showing the face of another puppet.

“Avenue Q” is a Tony-winning musical about twentysomething New Yorkers, both human and puppets, searching for life and love.

Expert: Da Vinci Painted Nude Mona Lisa

An Italian art expert says evidence suggests Leonardo da Vinci once painted a nude version of his famous Mona Lisa.

Renzo Manetti, a Florentine art expert and da Vinci specialist, said he believes the artist created “heavenly” and “vulgar” versions of the same portrait, a practice common among other Renaissance artists inspired by Neoplatonic philosophy, ANSA reported Monday.

“Even though the (nude) painting has been lost, there are at least 10 reproductions or comparable works, painted by pupils or disciples, which enable us to reconstruct the original,” Manetti wrote in his new book, “The Mona Lisa’s Veil.”

Manetti said a work by da Vinci’s student Andrea Salai, Monna Vanna, is especially compelling as a piece inspired by the nude Mona Lisa.

The researcher said da Vinci’s lost painting is believed to be in the same pose as the Mona Lisa, but on a balcony with one breast exposed.

Nude Nite Returns!

Nude Nite, an artistic event that celebrates the human body, is coming back to Tampa for a second year and Tampa area artists are invited to submit works for exhibit.

The Orlando-based Nude Nite, the largest nude art show in the United States, is seeking all kinds of works for its upcoming 2010 shows in Orlando on Feb. 11-13 and Tampa on March 4-6, according to event coordinator Kelly Stevens, an Orlando Realtor and art lover.

Launched in 1999 as an effort to put some fun and excitement into a gallery show, the event has grown to become one of Central Florida’s most popular art events.

Last year, Nude Nite expanded to Tampa for the first time, staging a three-night event in a 20,000-square-foot Ybor City warehouse that featured more than 100 “cutting-edge works from local and national artists.”

She says more than 1,000 people attended the first Tampa event. The second will be held in a warehouse in Tampa Heights.

Stevens says the goal is to get people who have never been to an art show to attend. “It’s not about sex, it’s about art,” she says.

Last year’s event in Tampa featured nude paintings, sculptures, photography, fine art, metal and abstracts and a “naked sushi” bar. There also were tongue-in-cheek burlesque shows, nude models posing for do-it-yourself sketches and actors that created “living nude sculptures.”

Stevens says all interested artists may submit up to two images by Jan. 14 for the Orlando show and Jan. 28 for the Tampa show.