The Los Angeles art scene is thriving with two notable exhibitions currently on view at local museums. The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) is hosting "Ordinary People: Photorealism and the Work of Art since 1968", a show featuring 40 artists working in the photorealism movement between the 1960s and today, including Vija Celmins, Audrey Flack, and Barkley L. Hendricks. The exhibition highlights the technical proficiency and meticulous verisimilitude of photorealism, as well as its political and aesthetic role in depicting people and places historically omitted from artistic representation. In a separate exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), "Imagining Black Diasporas: 21st-Century Art and Poetics" is taking an expansive view of contemporary Black art, featuring work by 60 artists from Africa, Europe, and the Americas. The show includes painting, sculpture, photography, and video created over roughly the past 25 years, curated by Dhyandra Lawson and pulled primarily from the museum's collection.
https://hyperallergic.com/979207/10-art-shows-to-see-in-los-angeles-january-2025/A unique art exhibit called "The Museum of Bad Gifts" has been set up at the Northern Contemporary Gallery in Toronto, where visitors can view and interact with a collection of unwanted gifts. The exhibit features items such as a ceramic clown, a Cabbage Patch doll reimagined from "freakish found parts," and a bag of cat nails. Artist Andy Fischer curated the exhibit, which encourages visitors to draw their own bad gift drawings and add to a collaborative sculpture. Admission is free, but some items are up for auction with proceeds going to the Toronto-based Daily Bread Food Bank. The exhibit will be on view until January 5, 2025.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-museum-of-bad-gifts-is-a-celebration-of-outlandish-objects-from-ceramic-clowns-to-cat-nail-clippings-180985759/Yazdi, a 40-year-old artist in Shiraz, has revitalized the city's old neighborhood of Narenjestan by transforming its dilapidated walls into vibrant murals. The artwork features intricate designs and patterns, including an image of Scheherazade from "One Thousand and One Nights", and has become a social media sensation and tourist attraction. Yazdi's workshop, located in a century-old building with traditional Persian architecture, is filled with artifacts and sculptures, and includes a room with 14,000 finger sculptures on the ceiling inspired by an Islamic fable. His work aims to turn Shiraz's alleyways into a vibrant cultural center, drawing inspiration from the Pompidou Centre in Paris.
https://www.rawstory.com/iran-artist-s-vision-for-culture-hub-enlivens-rustic-district-iran/As an interior designer, I've decided to avoid several home trends in 2025 that prioritize style over practicality. Specifically, I won't be incorporating Sherpa chairs into my designs due to their tendency to be high maintenance and difficult to clean. Additionally, beige couches and polyester-filled throw pillows are also being left out as they don't offer lasting value. In the kitchen, open shelving is not a design choice I'll be making, and crown molding will not be added to modern spaces.
https://www.insider.com/interior-designer-what-not-to-buy-this-year-2025Ferdi Tayfur, a renowned figure in Turkish music, has died at the age of 79. He was a prominent artist associated with Arabesque music, a genre that originated in Turkey. Tayfur's legacy is marked by his soulful songs and poignant storytelling, which have resonated with audiences.
https://www.trtworld.com/turkiye/ferdi-tayfur-the-soul-of-turkiyes-arabesque-music-falls-silent-18250020The Metropolitan Museum of Manila will host an exhibition titled "Timeless: J. Moreno" in honor of the pioneering fashion designer, J. Moreno. Moreno's contributions to Philippine fashion include promoting traditional textiles such as jusi and piña, reviving the Maria Clara gown, and elevating the Barong Tagalog. His efforts have gained him international recognition from notable figures including French couturier Pierre Cardin, the Emperor of Japan, and the kings of Morocco and Malaysia.
https://www.manilatimes.net/2025/01/04/entertainment-lifestyle/life-times/100-years-of-pitoy-moreno/2030009Australian artist Jeremy Geddes is set to open his first exhibition in over a decade, titled Periphery, at Thinkspace Projects in Los Angeles on January 11, 2025. The show will feature a collection of paintings and studies created by the artist.
https://www.juxtapoz.com/news/painting/jeremy-geddes-periphery-thinkspace-projects-los-angeles/In recent years, cities across India have undergone a vibrant transformation with the emergence of street art. Cities such as Kochi, Chennai, Goa, Mumbai, and Kolkata have seen their dull walls repurposed into vibrant works of art by local and international artists. In Kochi, the city's annual exhibition, the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, has put the city on the global map, while in Chennai, student initiatives like #ConquerTheConcrete and Paintbox have transformed the Kannagi Nagar area into an art district. Similarly, Goa's graffiti-covered walls showcase its diverse identity, while Mumbai's labyrinthine lanes are filled with artwork depicting Goan life and culture. In Kolkata, the city's deep connection to politics, culture, sports, and literature is reflected in its graffiti scene, which includes tongue-in-cheek political satires, murals of laureates, and caricatures of footballers.
https://www.ndtv.com/travel/6-cities-in-india-where-street-art-is-bringing-new-life-to-streets-7392448The Lat House Gallery in Perak features a collection of special exhibits showcasing the personal items, nostalgic photos, and comics of Datuk Mohd Nor Khalid, also known as Lat. The gallery includes awards and a unique experience where visitors can enter a wooden house inspired by his iconic comic "The Kampung Boy".
https://www.ipohecho.com.my/2025/01/03/living-art-eternal-stories-explore-heritage-works-at-the-lat-house-gallery/