Fire Friday: Artist Profile

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engineering, fire, fire friday, rusty oliver, sculpture, seattle

Rusty Oliver is a Seattle-based sculptor who specializes in pieces that actually incorporate propane and flames, not just in their construction but in the actual sculptures themselves (which he tends to label as “performances”). At his studio, Hazard Factory, he also teaches welding classes (especially to local teenagers), sponsors construction workshops, and is organizing a flaming tetherball league. We think he’s be a great contribution to the Love and Water community because he uses his creative mind to make art out of unlikely sources, and seeks to share his engineering gifts with his local community!

This is a series of “Ruebens’ tubes” that pulsate along with a beat. It’s so unlike anything we’ve covered before that we’re not sure what charity would link up with this type of artwork! Any suggestions, readers?

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Tae Querney

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korea, new york city, seattle, tae querney, visual art

Tae Querney was born in Seoul, Korea, moved to Seattle at age 9 and now lives in New York City with two cats.  Tae’s work has a soft, subtle quality to it that captures a fantastical quality in each subject matter she deals with.  Her use of beautiful characters combined with observations in fashion, tea or whatever strikes her fancy gives her a vehicle to merge worlds in a deep, celebratory style.  Here is what she had to say about some of her work:

This piece is done referencing Chrisitian Louboutin”s line of shoes. High heels generally makes a woman feel/look sexy. So by exploring that theme, I thought of flowers, which by nature is a very sexual organism. 

Whenever I can, I try to illustrate a topic that tickles viewer’s conscious. That’s why some of my illustrations don’t have eyes because I want the feel of the story to take over, rather than the character. Also, I hope that the viewer blocks the identity of the person in the picture, and they can place themselves in them.. the rest is up to the them. 

This is a part of personal ‘tea’ series I’m working on at the moment.. I recently learned a lot about teas, and found that each kind have their own deep history and healing properties, and I want to celebrate that.

Visit Tae’s Site: http://www.taequerney.com/