Pracilio is the Dealio

Following the story on The New Antiquarians in The New York Times that Karly blogged about here, there remains little question that taxidermy is hot. Of course, that be old news around these parts (see here and here). In fact, it's hard to remember way back to the time when taxidermy was seen as belonging exclusively to the domain of rednecks and long expired Victorian arcana. Now that taxidermy is trendily displayed by hipsters and preppies everywhere, many clever mutations of the original stuffed animals have been spawned -- for example, the works of Rachel Denny and our pal Hope Perkins. Well, the newest dead heads on the block from the Swarovski Safari series by Peter Pracilio are pretty fierce. Check it:

deyrolle

So I'm thinking this stuffed deer, courtesy of famous French taxidermist Deyrolle,

damien hirst crystal skull

Plus this diamond studded skull by Brit brat pack artist Damien Hirst,

peter pracilio

Equals this crystal encrusted deer mount by Peter Pracilio.

peter pracilio

Agreed? Since we're already grazing on the wild Savannas of Fifth Avenue, let's bust out our binoculars and view some of Pracilio's other gems that I've hunted down for you.

peter pracilio

peter pracilio

peter pracilio unicorn

peter pracilio unicorn

Swarovski unicorn: uptown version of the jackelope?

jackelope

via theashenledger (check out her cool prints, too)

So, what do you dudes think? Would these fine specimens be at home on the Hovey sister's walls?

hovey sisters

peter pracilio

And what would you choose: flash or fur?

Czech It Out: The Bohemia Glass Region

Last summer I had the absolute pleasure of visiting Ajeto Glassworks in the Northern Bohemia region of the Czech Republic. This region, specifically Novy Bor, is world-famous for its glassworks. Ajeto officially opened in 1994 by the world-renowned trio of Borek Sipek, Petr Novotny and Libor Fafala. Their current location is housed in the remnants of an old German textile factory in the city of Lindava.

If you can't take the heat of the studio, get into the kitchen. The facility includes a restaurant that allows visitors to dine while viewing a team of artists at work. The Ajeto restaurant was a ridiculously awesome feature to the facility, in my opinion and the food was some of the best I had while in the Czech Republic.

 

Although Borek Sipek was not present during my visit (I wish), it was his work I was most impressed with. His resume leaves me green with envy. It's not just anyone who can add Royal Court Architect in Prague by Presidential appointment to their list of accomplishments. Than again, it's not that hard to believe. His postmodernist furniture, tableware and chandeliers are hard to overlook. Most impressive however, are his laundry list of architectural achievements. Whether it's his work on Prague Castle, the Kyoto Opera House or Karl Lagerfeld's boutique in Paris (pictured below), the man is a multi-aesthetic genius of the first degree.

catalogue collage

Hello fellow Design Crisis followers, it's Melody of me melodia. I am so pleased to be doing a tiny guest spot here. You design savvy, forward thinking hussies are fantastic. I kinda racked my brain on what to focus on while I stood on this design crisis soap box. I scoured through my unattended magazines and furniture catalogs for some kind of inspiration. Then I came to the realization that I have way too many unread wallpaper, simpleliving, believer, good and martha's lying around. Keeping up with the goin'ons is not easy. Currently our office and my night stand have piles of dogeared magazines.

Books Stacked (Pottery Barn Spring 2006). Collage on paper, gouache, graphite.
Then voilà I came across the work of Leslie Mutchler and her cleaver catalog collages . When I spotted these I immediately had an I should have thought of that moment. What a great way to make creative use of those read and used catalogs we all have lying around.  

 

 

 

 

Untitled (Brown Drawers). 2005. Collage on paper.  

White Storage (Pottery Barn Spring 2006)

Baskets (Pottery Barn Spring 2006).
Black Storage (Pottery Barn Spring 2006).
White Storage (West Elm Spring 2006). Collage on paper, color pencil.
Black Storage (West Elm Spring 2006). Collage on paper, color pencil, graphite.
Brown Storage (Crate & Barrel Spring 2006). Collage on paper, color pencil.
Do you have cute makeshift magazine tables? Or are you like me and bordering the brink of being a hoarder?