#Contemporary Applied Arts

[misscromwellsmonocle]

Applied Reflections (2014) by Scott Fraser

[internationalemeteorologie]

Alessandro Mendini

Poltrona di Proust Geometrica (by Cappellini). 1978-08

[writingfroggy]

see my stance on modern art is if someone is trying to make art and they make something then it’s art

[prunelier]

i will never agree with the "i hate paris because of the parisians" discourse, i myself hate paris because of the *parisians who work in fashion. and the djs. and the landlords. if all of them didn't exist paris would be my perfect city.

[croix-meridies]

Every time you are in the modern and contemporary art section of a museum and think angrily “why does this deserve to be in a museum???” I encourage you to actually go and answer that question.

Look at the name of the piece and when it was made, do those give you any clues? What about what it was made from? Google the artist, what in their life would have caused them to make it, what did they say about it? It’s worth it.

[adglaciem]

Viv I need you to know that every time I see you on the dash or in my notifs or in my dms or literally ANYWHERE my day gets a million times brighter, I love reading your writing and your hcs regardless of which muse/chara you're talking about and honestly going back and forth with you about kemoji has made me love this series x10 times more than I initially did. I'm also SOOO very grateful to you for helping me find the new ch translations whenever they drop & it warms my heart to see your passion for Romanian culture and the way you've made Mioara into SUCH a compelling chara that she's practically tied to my Mihai. like you genuinely couldn't tear her out of my hands if you tried. ANYWAY ILYSM AND I HOPE YOU FEEL BETTER SOON!! xoxoxo

CHRISSSSSSSSS you have no idea how much this means to me... ;^;/ .... i dont have the words for it and i dont have my emotes on this computer but rest assured im doing some WUAHGHGH shit

it's been so fun going back and forth with you on things too!!!! ive definitely come to like mihai so much more as a character and its been fun exploring dynamics that never could happen in the series and i love hearing your headcanons and im being 100% serious when i say i absolute love how unabashed you are with writing your muses. i feel like theres a struggle myself and a lot of other writers have when it comes to writing characters like mihai or mikito where we wanna sand off some of the rougher edges but there's so much more life and voice when someone (you) can keep them true to form because thats the appeal of characters like that in the first place!!!

AND IM SO GLAD YOU LIKE MIOARA..... <3 i always get a little worried that when i write characters like her that i may slip into "weird weeby territory" but genuinely i love writing her and drawing him and reading deep dives and articles and journals and everything else that ive been led to on the journey!!! the decision to make him romanian actually came about as the result of an existing passion for learning about the culture because of an exhibit my job hosted of contemporary works from the cluj-napoca school and the information document i put together for it since i have another romanian friend that i knew would be really excited for it and i wanted to make her proud 💪💪💪 almost a year later and now im working on learning the language and trying my best to do right by such a rich and interesting history & culture

LOLLL okay that got corny sorry i didnt mean to get on a soap box there but it just makes me really happy to hear that if nothing else my effort is shining through <3 ok ily chris im gonna stop typing before i make myself look goofy on here

[pretty-noose]

I will never understand the psychology of people who refuse to watch/engage with anything that was made before the 21st century I just can’t comprehend it

[h0neyfreak]

***

[ellipsus-writes]

Each week (or so), we'll highlight the relevant (and sometimes rage-inducing) news adjacent to writing and freedom of expression. (Find it on the blog too!) This week:

Censorship watch: Somehow, KOSA returned

It’s official: The Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) is back from the dead. After failing to pass last year, the bipartisan bill has returned with fresh momentum and the same old baggage—namely, vague language that could endanger hosting platforms, transformative work, and implicitly target LGBTQ+ content under the guise of “protecting kids.”

… But wait, it gets better (worse). Republican Senator Mike Lee has introduced a new bill that makes other attempts to censor the internet look tame: the Interstate Obscenity Definition Act (IODA)—basically KOSA on bath salts. Lee’s third attempt since 2022, the bill would redefine what counts as “obscene” content on the internet, and ban it nationwide—with “its peddlers prosecuted.”

Whether IODA gains traction in Congress is still up in the air. But free speech advocates are already raising alarm bells over its implications.

The bill aims to gut the long-standing legal definition of “obscenity” established by the 1973 Miller v. California ruling, which currently protects most speech under the First Amendment unless it fails a three-part test. Under the Miller test, content is only considered legally obscene if it 1: appeals to prurient interests, 2: violates “contemporary community standards,” and 3: is patently offensive in how it depicts sexual acts.

IODA would throw out key parts of that test—specifically the bits about “community standards”—making it vastly easier to prosecute anything with sexual content, from films and photos, to novels and fanfic.

Under Lee’s definition (which—omg shocking can you believe this coincidence—mirrors that of the Heritage Foundation), even the most mild content with the affect of possible “titillation” could be included. (According to the Woodhull Freedom Foundation, the proposed definition is so broad it could rope in media on the level of Game of Thrones—or, generally, anything that depicts or describes human sexuality.) And while obscenity prosecutions are quite rare these days, that could change if IODA passes—and the collateral damage and criminalization (especially applied to creative freedoms and LGBT+ content creators) could be massive.

And while Lee’s last two obscenity reboots failed, the current political climate is... let’s say, cloudy with a chance of fascism.

Sound a little like Project 2025? Ding ding ding! In fact, Russell Vought, P2025’s architect, was just quietly appointed to take over DOGE from Elon Musk (the agency on a chainsaw crusade against federal programs, culture, and reality in general).

So. One bill revives vague moral panic, another wants to legally redefine it and prosecute creators, and the man who helped write the authoritarian playbook—with, surprise, the intent to criminalize LGBT+ content and individuals—just gained control of the purse strings.

Cool cool cool.

AO3 works targeted in latest (massive) AI scraping

Rewind to last month—In the latest “wait, they did what now?” moment for AI, a Hugging Face user going by nyuuzyou uploaded a massive dataset made up of roughly 12.6 million fanworks scraped from AO3—full text, metadata, tags, and all. (Info from r/AO3: If your works’ ID numbers between 1 and 63,200,000, and has public access, the work has been scraped.)

And it didn’t stop at AO3. Art and writing communities like PaperDemon and Artfol, among others, also found their content had been quietly scraped and posted to machine learning hubs without consent.

This is yet another attempt in a long line of more “official” scraping of creative work, and the complete disregard shown by the purveyors of GenAI for copyright law and basic consent. (Even the Pope agrees.)

AO3 filed a DMCA takedown, and Hugging Face initially complied—temporarily. But nyuuzyou responded with a counterclaim and re-uploaded the dataset to their personal website and other platforms, including ModelScope and DataFish—sites based in China and Russia, the same locations reportedly linked to Meta’s own AI training dataset, LibGen.

Some writers are locking their works. Others are filing individual DMCAs. But as long as bad actors and platforms like Hugging Face allow users to upload massive datasets scraped from creative communities with minimal oversight, it’s a circuitous game of whack-a-mole. (As others have recommended, we also suggest locking your works for registered users only.)

After disavowing AI copyright, leadership purge hits U.S. cultural institutions

In news that should give us all a brief flicker of hope, the U.S. Copyright Office officially confirmed: if your “creative” work was generated entirely by AI, it’s not eligible for copyright.

A recently released report laid it out plainly—human authorship is non-negotiable under current U.S. law, a stance meant to protect the concept of authorship itself from getting swallowed by generative sludge. The report is explicit in noting that generative AI draws “on massive troves of data, including copyrighted works,” and asks: “Do any of the acts involved require the copyright owners’ consent or compensation?” (Spoiler: yes.) It’s a “straight ticket loss for the AI companies” no matter how many techbros’ pitch decks claim otherwise (sorry, Inkitt).

“The Copyright Office (with a few exceptions) doesn’t have the power to issue binding interpretations of copyright law, but courts often cite to its expertise as persuasive,” tech law professor Blake. E Reid wrote on Bluesky.As the push to normalize AI-generated content continues (followed by lawsuits), without meaningful human contribution—actual creative labor—the output is not entitled to protection.

… And then there’s the timing.

The report dropped just before the abrupt firing of Copyright Office director Shira Perlmutter, who has been vocally skeptical of AI’s entitlement to creative work.

It's yet another culture war firing—one that also conveniently clears the way for fewer barriers to AI exploitation of creative work. And given that Elon Musk’s pals have their hands all over current federal leadership and GenAI tulip fever… the overlap of censorship politics and AI deregulation is looking less like coincidence and more like strategy.

Also ousted (via email)—Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden. According to White House press secretary and general ghoul Karoline Leavitt, Dr. Hayden was dismissed for “quite concerning things that she had done… in the pursuit of DEI, and putting inappropriate books in the library for children.” (Translation: books featuring queer people and POC.)

Dr. Hayden, who made history as the first Black woman to hold the position, spent the last eight years modernizing the Library of Congress, expanding digital access, and turning the institution into something more inclusive, accessible, and, well, public. So of course, she had to go. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The American Library Association condemned the firing immediately, calling it an “unjust dismissal” and praising Dr. Hayden for her visionary leadership. And who, oh who might be the White House’s answer to the LoC’s demanding and (historically) independent role?

The White House named Todd Blanche—AKA Trump’s personal lawyer turned Deputy Attorney General—as acting Librarian of Congress.

That’s not just sus, it’s likely illegal—the Library is part of the legislative branch, and its leadership is supposed to be confirmed by Congress. (You know, separation of powers and all that.)

But, plot twist: In a bold stand, Library of Congress staff are resisting the administration's attempts to install new leadership without congressional approval.

If this is part of the broader Project 2025 playbook, it’s pretty clear: Gut cultural institutions, replace leadership with stunningly unqualified loyalists, and quietly centralize control over everything from copyright to the nation’s archives.

Because when you can’t ban the books fast enough, you just take over the library.

Rebellions are built on hope

Over the past few years (read: eternity), a whole ecosystem of reactionary grifters has sprung up around Star Wars—with self-styled CoNtEnT CrEaTorS turning outrage to revenue by endlessly trashing the fandom. It’s all part of the same cynical playbook that radicalized the fallout of Gamergate, with more lightsabers and worse thumbnails. Even the worst people you know weighed in on May the Fourth (while Prequel reassessment is totally valid—we’re not giving J.D. Vance a win).

But one thing that shouldn't be up for debate is this: Andor, which wrapped its phenomenal two-season run this week, is probably the best Star Wars project of our time—maybe any time. It’s a masterclass in what it means to work within a beloved mythos and transform it, deepen it, and make it feel urgent again. (Sound familiar? Fanfic knows.)

Radicalization, revolution, resistance. The banality of evil. The power of propaganda. Colonialism, occupation, genocide—and still, in the midst of it all, the stubborn, defiant belief in a better world (or Galaxy).

Even if you’re not a lifelong SW nerd (couldn’t be us), you should give it a watch. It’s a nice reminder that amidst all the scraping, deregulation, censorship, enshittification—stories matter. Hope matters.

And we’re still writing.

Let us know if you find something other writers should know about, or join our Discord and share it there!

- The Ellipsus Team xo

[my-darling-boy]

I say this as a design student myself but like…. Design As An Academic Degree would be far more enjoyable if lecturers believed in design as a creative problem solving measure that can take whatever forms of creative approach it wants and actually encourage a wide variety of subject matter, style, and ideas and Not design as in a monolithic cliquey subgenre of modern/contemporary art defined by white collar avant garde collages profiting off of aestheticising systemic issues, governed by some of the most socially ignorant people you’ve ever met. The entire ethos of this course is pretty much “I don’t know how to tell you what design is, you just have to know how to do it” and then going “No that’s not it” to anything you show them and when you ask them why not they give you a different answer Every Time. This is the only course I’ve ever done that’s given me like negative net information if that’s somehow even possible. My only take away is that whoever runs these degrees isn’t actually teaching design, they’re just teaching you how to be trendy. This is exemplified by the fact not once in two years did we ever take a class or discuss what design even is, how to do it, how to contextually and realistically apply it, and how it has changed over the centuries, yet had an entire year long module, twice, on social networking and gallery exhibiting. Doesn’t help the whole lot is made worse by the fact that lecturers who refuse to acknowledge their style bias will stop at nothing to impose that onto a project to the point you’re nearly having to appease them over the client. Hoping it’s just where I live but I’m sadly gathering this is not an isolated issue

[uwmspeccoll]

Decorative Sunday

There are 440 Washi-producing centers throughout Japan. It is widely produced not only as traditional paper using pure kozo, mitsumata, and gampi, but also as more contemporary paper used in art, crafts, folkcrafts, casting, and molding. Washi is an intangible cultural asset and traditional craft product of Japan.

The examples shown here are from Washi, Handmade Paper of Japan (日本の紙 : 全国手漉き和紙見本帖), a specimen book of 307 Washi paper samples in a binder, produced at Ino, Agawa District, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan by Zenkoku Tesuki Washi Rengōka in 1997. Shown here from the top:

Ecchu Washi, Katazomeshi (Stencil Printed Paper): A resist is applied onto the kozo base paper through a stencil. The paper is then dyed, and then the resist paste is washed away to reveal the image.

Mino Washi: Flowers and butterflies are embedded in kozo paper, used for handicrafts and interior decoration.

Echizen Washi, Seikaiha (semicircular repeated wave patterns): mitsumata paper with gold leaf.

Mino Washi: Kozo with embedded butterfly.

Echizen Washi, Kiriasa: Mitsumata paper.

Echizen Washi, Hiryushi: Mitsumata paper.

Sakishu Washi: Unbleached kozo paper is processed by folding the paper and dipping the edge into dyes to create a variety of colors and patterns.

Tosa Washi: Made from kozo and Manila hemp.

Kurotani Washi, Bingata-somegami: Made from kozo, Bingata was produced as one of the folkcrafts in Ryukyu, using a dye and resist method.

Our copy is another donation from our late friend Jerry Buff (1931-2025).

View more posts on decorative papers.

View more Decorative Sunday posts.

[elodee3]

Day 24

Joe Hills + Ukiyo-e

For Joe I made a piece inspired by Ukiyo-e woodblock prints! To learn more about Ukiyo-e please continue below the cut.

HaDM Fundraiser for Gamers Outreach

Ukiyo-e is a style of art from Japan that flourished during the Edo period. It began in the late 1600s and continued until the mid 1800s.

Ukiyo-e marked a significant shift in Japanese art history. Before this movement, art largely featured nobility, historical legends, and nature. Artists traditionally valued simplicity and restraint in their work. With the emergence of ukiyo-e, artists began depicting everday people, contemporary life, and popular folklore and compositions became much more dynamic.

These prints also had a strong influence on European visual arts. Movements throughout the 1800s, from Impressionism to Art Nouveau, drew inspiration from ukiyo-e both stylistically and thematically.

Ukiyo-e prints were created with a multi-step woodblock printing technique through the combined effort of artists, carvers, and printers. The artist drew a design, the carver carved it into wood blocks, then the printer added ink to the blocks. A separate block was made for each color. Paper was then pressed onto each block, one color at a time, to create an image. Once all the blocks were carved, artists could product multiple copies of the same work. This allowed for prints to be sold commercially.

For my piece, I studied prints from Katsushika Hokusai and Utagawa Kuniyoshi. Unsurprisingly, I did not have the proper materials nor an entire workshop of people on hand to reproduce the printing methods these artists used. Instead, I made a homemade hommage to ukiyo-e with the supplies reasonably available to me.

I sketched out a design and then carved it into a wooden coaster. Then I applied the "ink" (actually watered down acrylic paint because I don't own any printing inks) and pressed it onto some wet media paper. After it dried, I used very thin acrylic paints to apply color.

Here is a cropped image of the print as well as a picture of the print next to the wood block I carved for the outline:

[scotianostra]

On July 4th 1834, the designer Christopher Dresser was born.

Born in Glasgow he studied at the Government School of Design in London, specialising in botanical studies, before starting his own studio around 1860.

His career was built on designing for an expanding professional class consumer market and he achieved critical success in 1899 when Studio magazine described him as, ‘Perhaps the greatest of commercial designers, imposing his fantasy and invention upon the ordinary output of British Industry’.

From the 1870s Christopher Dresser also became a brand as his products carried his name, which was associated with good taste.

Dresser was an industrial designer before the profession had been invented, a man who found new ways of designing for production that few of his contemporaries could have imagined. He grasped both the properties of materials and the processes of production and adapted his designs and aesthetics to them brilliantly.

He is now widely known as one of the first and most important, independent, designers and was a pivotal figure in the Aesthetic Movement, and a major contributor to the allied Anglo-Japanese or Modern English style; both originated in England and had long lasting international influence.

Dresser provided designs for some 60 companies. Among the most notable were Wedgwood, Minton and the Ault and Linthorpe potteries. In 1880, Dresser founded the Art Furnishers’ Alliance (AFA), opening premises at 157, New Bond Street the following year.

As with most great Victorians, Dresser’s reputation plummeted after his death in 1904 and he was virtually forgotten by the 1930s, but some of his metalwork designs are still in production, such as his oil and vinegar sets and toast rack designs.

Christopher Dresser died at Mulhouse, Alsace, France, 24th November 1904.

Of hs designs I like the "Clutha Vae" in the second pic, it is part of the collection in Museum of Applied Arts, Budapest.

[angrythingstarlight]

What if in that ask, Bucky will meet Malyshka (probably her visit his art gallery). Will anything change for him? Will he have a second thoughts about his wife because of Malyshka?

The angst.

The pining.

What happens when the mobster can't have the only person he wants? What happens when his loveless marriage suddenly becomes suffocating now that he knows what could have been if he had only met you first?

Pairing: Mafia!Bucky x Reader

AN: What if scenario from my Only Exception Series. This would not be a cheating fic.

"Who is she?" Bucky asks, his head tilting to the side. His rapt gaze follows you as you cross the gallery.

The conversation around him wanes. His men glance at you and then each other. When it becomes apparent that no one will answer, he raises two fingers, beckoning Nico over. "Find out."

Nico nods once before pulling out his phone. Bucky resumes his meeting yet his attention strays back to you. His stoic blue gaze warms as he drinks in your every expression, noting the way your eyes light up when you stumble across a particularly gorgeous painting.

This is the fifth weekend in as many months that you've visited his gallery. Each time, he struggles more and more to remember why he's supposed to stay away from you. Why he shouldn't leave his office and go down there. To you.

You lift your hand, the wistful smile pulls at your lips telling him how badly you want to feel the painting under your fingertips. He understands the feeling because a part of him aches to trace your lips, he wants to taste your smile, and find out if it's as sweet as it appears.

By the time you tear yourself away and move on to the contemporary section, he decides it's yours.

"Pakhan, I'm sending it over now," Nico states seconds before Bucky's phone lights up. "There's one more thing I need to check, I'll be back in five."

Bucky doesn't lift his eyes from the screen, gruffly ordering the rest of the room to continue. A quick scroll through and he knows everything about you. It's not enough. Not nearly enough but it's all he can allow himself for now.

He's not going down there. He's going to finish this meeting. And go home. Bucky repeats this twice. A desperate attempt to convince himself to not go down that path. Life has always had a cruel edge to it, dangling his desires just out of reach. Or in this case, one floor down. Wrapped up in a cerise sweater, currently staring at his latest Saville like it's the sun.

He'd give up half his empire to have you look at him like that.

Go home Buck. You can't have her. You can have anything, anyone you want. Except her.

"Pakhan." Nico's voice pulls him out of his musings, Bucky acknowledges his enforcer with a raised brow. "I thought you might want to know that she's applying for the one of the open positions. Caitlin has her application, her name was flagged in the system during my search. She doesn't have much experience and Caitlin claims to have a few candidates that have better resumes."

Bucky turns in his chair, and a ghost of a sardonic grin plays at the corner of his lips. The thought of you walking through those doors and not coming back is unbearable. Almost as much being in your presence knowing he can't have you. It's an easy decision.

"She's hired."

And do you want more of this AU?

[annnmoody]

Hi everyone! I’ve started a gofundme so I can attend my dream residency ☁️🔗 contribute here!! It’s difficult to ask for this help in the midst of so many arts programs being defunded due to NEA cuts, but artists and arts organizations always deserve funding and have to get it where they can!! Any donation helps and spreading the word is especially appreciated ⛓️

After years of applying, I was recently accepted into the Vermont Studio Center (VSC) Residency Program, a long-time dream come true. I was originally waitlisted, but was thrilled to be offered a spot for their June session. Unfortunately, because of the timing of my acceptance, I am no longer eligible for fellowship funding. The total cost of the residency is $3,442.50, which must be paid in full by May 25, 2025 — less than two weeks before the residency begins on June 9. In addition to the residency cost, I will need an estimated $1500 in material and transportation funds.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity at a pivotal moment in my career. I’ve been applying to VSC since 2017, and the chance to spend three weeks immersed in an inspiring, supportive community of artists would be deeply meaningful. This residency would also help me build connections and expand my network beyond the South — opening up new possibilities for collaboration, growth, and creative exchange.

Over the past fifteen years, I’ve built a dedicated artistic practice. I’ve mounted solo exhibitions at the Gadsden Museum of Art, The Old Bailey Gallery, and COOP Gallery, among others. I’ve received several grants and awards, including a 2025 Individual Artist Fellowship in Craft from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. My work will also be featured in the upcoming 2025 Alabama Triennial at the Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts. I currently serve as an Instructor of Foundations at the University of Alabama and am an artist-member at Ground Floor Contemporary.

If you’re able to contribute, no matter the amount, your support would mean the world to me. Thank you so much for helping me take this important step forward. Follow this link to donate!!!

[paganimagevault]

Magyar (Hungarian) sabretach plates 9th-10th C. CE. More images and sources on my blog, link below.

"Hungarian men held their essential tools (particularly the fire-starting kit of the age, that is, fire steel, flint and tinder) in their typically leather sabretaches suspended on the right side of their belts. The sabretache’s front flap was occasionally ornamented with bronze or gilded silver mounts, or contiguous plates (sabretache plates) as early as around the 900s. The ornaments on the sabretaches (plates and mounts) were typically Hungarian rank indicators of the 10th century; moreover, some regard these as power insignia of the dignitaries serving the prince’s family. They could have belonged to the military escort of Hungarian great princes, or were probably leaders or high-ranking participants of the raids. The number of such artefacts ever displayed in a museum is extremely low, we only know about 27 sabretache plates and 13 ornamental mounted or leather sabretaches including the recently found pieces. Most of them were found in the upper region of the River Tisza, some around the boundaries of Transdanubia and Upper Hungary, but not even one has ever been found in other core areas (e.g., Transylvania, southern Hungary).

Ornamented pieces represent outstanding examples of 10th century Hungarian goldsmithery. However, it was not ornamentation that expressed ranking, but the right to wear these objects and other insignia (such as gilded silver-plated belt mounts, sabers, quivers holding arrows, or harness decorations). Sabretache mount ornaments gradually lost their significance in the rapidly transforming society and their use discontinued after the Hungarian raids had stopped (after 955/970). Hungarian great princes consolidated the central power with a firm hand in the last third of the 10th century, which implied the internal relocation of the population, and the organisation of a new Western-type military escort. The onetime colourful Eastern clothing and the art behind it vanished.

A Hungarian Conquest period cemetery consisting of 77 undisturbed graves were unearthed in the vicinity of Páty settlement at the very beginning of 2022. Two graves also included insignia, namely sabretache ornaments, which suggests burials of extremely high-ranking men. Similar complete sabretache ornaments unearthed by applying contemporary archaeologoical methods were last discovered in 2011, while only as few as 38 pieces of such artefacts have been previously known from the Carpathian Basin so far. A further significance of the finds of Páty lies in the fact that sabretaches have been found together with their content (flint fire steel, and whetstone).

At the end of the campaigns against the western states and Byzantium (955 and 970) probably also weakened the power of the tribal aristocracy. Historical sources and archaeological finds suggest that the Hungarian Chieftans strengthened their central power with a firm hand in the last third of the 10th century, both by large-scale internal population resettlement and by organising a new type of military entourage around them. They tried to equip their members with Western-style weapons, and the former badges of dignity lost their role and were no longer used by the new escort. The splendour of oriental costume and art of the past has slowly faded away, left only by the magnificent jewellery that was buried in the ground in the preceding decades."

-taken from the Hungarian National Museum