The Whole (Art) World in the Palm of Your Hand

On a scale of one to ten – ten being the most – how much of your world is consumed by art? Many of us art enthusiasts can’t get enough art. We practice art, talk about art and devour news of current art events and exhibits.

Thankfully, there is enough art inspired news to fulfill our insatiable appetites. Actually, there might be too much news. Sometimes it is nice to filter out the fluff and get to what is important. This is where an art/news app comes in.

An App for Art Enthusiasts

Now, with an iPad app called “Planet Art,” you can receive valuable news from the art world. According to UBS, the banking mogul behind the art app, “Planet Art is the location to simplify your access to contemporary art.”

Artnet.com praises the app (which was designed by Razorfish), saying:

“The app seeks to cut through the glut of art publishing initiatives, filtering out the most essential news, features, and market analysis and presenting it all in a clean, pleasingly-designed layout on the iPad. See it as the curated arts RSS feeder you didn’t have to create yourself.”

How Does Planet Art Work?

Planet Art pulls quality content about contemporary art from sources like The Art Newspaper, ARTnews and more. It also swims outside of the mainstream featuring worthwhile reads from blogsites and independent publications.

Aside from gathering content, the app also organizes articles into three main feeds: news, features and “The Market.” (The latter showcases articles that help everyone from art students to high profile collectors stay up-to-date on trends and happenings in the art world.) Also, users have the option to pick and choose the type of information they receive by applying keywords to create unique streams.

Another Must-Have Art App

Long before the Swiss bank merged the world of art and apps, Segmation brought digital paint-by-number patterns to the digital devices of art enthusiasts.

SegPlay Mobile makes fun ready-to-paint pattern sets available on iPhones and iPads. The app has several modes (normal, scored, hint, creative, and instant), providing an assortment of playing options which test your painting speed, as well as your artistic acumen. It allows users to color and zoom into intricate line patterns and produce photorealistic images.

With SegPlay Mobile, you can take art into your own hands. If you haven’t already, explore how fun and relaxing the world of digital paint-by-number can be. Click here to download the app for free: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/segplay-mobile/id395127581?mt=8.

Read more Segmation blog posts about art and color:

Vision Problems Guide Artists

Graphic Designer Creates a Different TYPE of Art

Colorful Jewelry Inspired by Classic Art

Be an Artist in 2 minutes with Segmation SegPlay® PC (see more details here)

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The Op-Art of Josef Albers

Josef Albers, photograph by Arnold Newman, 1948. © Arnold Newman

In a recent post, a popular art form of the 20th century was introduced. Op-Art puts thought provoking optical illusions onto a flat canvas. During the early 1900’s, the art form flourished with the creative use of lines and patterns. At the start, artists used black and white paint or ink to create captivating images; color was incorporated later. One artist and theorist at the forefront of this art style, who also pioneered the technique of adding color, was a man by the name Josef Albers.

German-born American artist, Josef Albers studied at the Bauhaus school for arts and crafts in Germany. The school existed at the time of Nazi dominance in Germany and, subsequently, closed in 1933. After spending decade at Bauhaus as an art instructor, Alber’s emigrated to the United States, where he continued his career as an artist and teacher.

After spending some time in the United States, Albers accepted a position at teaching at Yale University. It was there that Josef Albers was able to advance the graphic art program before retiring from teaching in 1958.

In the early years of his retirement, as a fellow at Yale, Albers received funding to exhibit and lecture on the art form he had done so much to advance. By this time, Albers had catapulted many artists into successful careers. The list of notable students includes Richard Anuszkiewicz and Eva Hesse. Both artists are considered major forces in the Op-Art movement that swept the world during the 1960’s and 70’s.

Aside from his artwork and teaching, Josef Albers added another form of art to his long list of talents: In 1963, his book, Interaction of Color detailed the theory behind colorful op-art. This writing built upon a foundational thought of Albers — that colors have an internal and deceptive logic all-their-own.

Albers continued to paint and write until he died in 1976. However, the impression he left on the world of art, especially as an abstract painter and theorist, continues to live and influence abstract art today. Even though much of his work is well known and recognizable, it continues to thrive because of the Josef and Anni Albers Foundation. To this day, the organization supports exhibitions featuring the work of Josef Albers and his wife Anni, who was a textile artist.

The contribution Josef Albers made to the world of art is undeniable. He was successful at merging traditional European art with modern American art, to create an abstract style all his own. While his roots were grounded in the type of constructivist thinking that allowed Bauhaus school of arts and crafts to flourish, his experiences in America allowed him freedom to explore patterns and colors that are now the signature of optical art.

Op-art and graphic art continue to advance while consistently affirming Josef Albers influence. The world renowned teacher, artist, and color theorist is very much alive in the work of abstract artists today. Whether it is through his written words, paintings, or students who survived him, Albers will influence young artists for years to come.

No words can conclude a story about the life of this great man, except, perhaps his own. Alber’s was quoted as saying, “Abstraction is real, probably more real than nature. I prefer to see with closed eyes.” Others are happy to have their eyes opened by the influential life and art of Josef Albers. May his legacy and art been seen for years to come.

Be a Artist in 2 minutes with Segmation SegPlay® PC (see more details here)

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