[Sami Jensen] Two months ago, we were giddy to introduce kate spade new york’s colorful Artist Portfolio Prints — three in a set, four sets, one for each season. We were dazzled by the vivid January red, lovely February pink and energizing March yellow. The latest set introduces green, orange and gold as the colors of summer. Think grass tickling your toes, juicy oranges and warm, golden sunshine.
(And before we forget, read about our special giveaway at the end of the post.) kate spade new york asked 12 of their favorite artists to decorate 2011 with color. The second trio of artists are Grant Hamilton, April, Green; The Design Conspiracy, May, Orange; and Friends of Type, June, Gold.
Green, by Grant Hamilton.
Grant Hamilton is quickly becoming one of my favorite artists, too. With the goal of finding beauty in the mundane, Hamilton’s Polaroids capture swooshes of color and intriguing patterns discovered on ordinarily uninteresting specimens. The photos in the print above, for example, are of a bus, a bench, a vending machine and a sign.
Describing the finished result as “virescent” (ha!), Hamilton says, “When I think of green, I’m reminded of springtime, rejuvenation and freshness. I’m starting to sound like an air freshener ad. …” OK, maybe a little, Grant.
Orange, by The Design Conspiracy.
Beloved for their (soda) pop art, the folks at The Design Conspiracy really like orange. They even won an Orange Small Business Award for best marketing campaign in 2004. “Orange makes you feel warm. It’s the colour of health,” says Tom Shaw, director of The Design Conspiracy in London.
When I asked if the design for kate spade new york was inspired by a specific brand of orange soda (I imagined the design team spending days sampling different orange sodas, looking for the right design inspiration), Tom laughed. “Actually, all of our bottle cap prints have been a nostalgia trip, memories of riding a bike on the back streets, rope swings in the woods and fizzy pop for energy.” What a beautiful summer visage.
Gold, by Friends of Type.
Aaron Carámbula — one of the Friends of Type, and co-founder and principal of Objective Subject — was honored and terrified to work with kate spade new york during the year of color. “I was floored. Just completely surprised and incredibly intimidated. The bar was set high and it had me sweating.” But, he says, the end result is wonderful. Though the color gold and the phrase “join the circus” were assigned to him, Carámbula did not feel creatively restricted. “I work much better under constraints than I do with completely open assignments, so I was glad to be assigned the color and phrase.”
Carámbula interpreted the phrase on the card as an invitation to join “the style circus,” which he describes as “a beautiful, crazy, elegant and ever-changing place,” much like his end result — wispy and graceful … also bold and playful.
Always inspired and energized by the vibrant kate spade new york aesthetic, I can’t wait to see what the next three months will look like!
Felt & Wire has one limited-edition Artist Portfolio Print set to share with a lucky reader! Tell us what you love most about this time of the year and on June 3, 2011, we’ll pick a winner at random. The summer portfolio series is a set of the three above 10 x 8-in. prints. Designed for salon-style hanging and printed on super-thick Mohawk Superfine with an eggshell finish, the set is available in kate spade new york shops and online. Need wall-hanging inspiration? See some super salon walls here.
Comments (14)
Summer fruits and veggies!!! As a child, I used to wait all year for all my favorite foods to be in season: peaches, strawberries, asparagus and berries…and my mother used to tell me that because my birthday was in summer, these were my birthday gifts from nature
I love the smell of sunscreen this time of year!
I love sunsets in spring: Rome gets even more magical, with fresh air blowing and flowers falling from trees. It’s the perfect time for walking hands in hands with my boyfriend <3
I love soaking up sun rays, disc golfing, going to the beach, and sleeping with the windows wide open. Hooray, Summer!
I love the smell of fresh cut grass.
My favorite things about this time of year are the smell of sun-kissed skin and lazy days spent lounging on a blanket in the park.
NYC Concerts and biking everwhere!! Also love that the days last forever
I love being able to walk out the door without a coat, into the sunshine, and head down to the park for a picnic and some good times with good friends.
My favorite thing about summer is when the restlessness of winter finally goes away as soon as the warm weather rolls in! It’s as if as soon as it gets around 50 to 60 degrees, every worry is silenced as a new arena of experiences begins to open up.
I also love how summer means it’s officially time to start up a BBQ, wear less layers, switch over to iced coffee, spontaneous lake outings and road trips and also night time bike rides.
This time of year means bright colors and fun dresses!
I love the tulips in my front yard which come out to play around this time of the year! They never fail to cheer me up
I love the long days spent with my wife and the evening walks. The warmth just makes everything feel alive and better.
I love campfires, ice cream cones, beach adventures, smell of fresh cut grass, street fairs and farmer’s market.
My favorite summer memories bring up thoughts of spending days with my daughters when they were younger – just hanging out, playing in the little pool in the back yard, being a part of the summer reading program at the library and reading tons of books, eating popsicles together, picking fresh vegetables from the garden for supper, walking barefoot in the grass, wearing sundresses, going for bike rides, catching lightning bugs at dusk, being exhausted and happy at the end of the day when I would tuck them in and kiss them goodnight. . . just the simple unstressed joys of summer!