![Onoko Series No. 1 by Campbell Laird Studio. Brace yourselves, my kind readers, for I am in the mood for some serious colour. The following marathon of eye candy comes to you courtesy of the Campbell Laird Studio. Apparently, Mr. Laird is a former musician from a “successful Australian rock band” – but Google has been no help in this regard. Does anyone know which band this Tasmanian artist hails from? I’m embarrassed to admit, having been a part-time DJ in a previous lifetime, that I am totally stumped by this one. While Laird’s musical background eludes me, his bold and fun prints are definitely clear. Laird has been painting and illustrating for over 20 years and is an award-winning artist. For a long time his memorable work has been seen in the homes and offices of celebrities and major corporations [from Trump Tower and The New York Times, to being featured in the Dwell Magazine Case Study Home], but he is now making his prints available to the public via his site. Campbell Laird is said to be “one of the pioneers of water based pigment ink printing” and uses no solvents of any kind, from the ink to the final varnish finish, making his artistic process completely eco.friendly. An excerpt from his Artist Statement reads: “My medium of choice is water based archival pigment ink prints, in a similar way that Andy Warhol’s medium was silk screened prints. I have moved to this medium because the oil based paint and solvents I used in the past were environmentally unfriendly. It’s important for me as an Artist not to pollute the world that inspires my art. To this end, every element of my work - from the inks to the paper to the final varnish - is chosen with this thought in mind, without sacrificing the highest archival standards.” Laird also explains that he is inspired by organic elements and shapes, such as the “Tasmanian bush, a tree branch, waves trailing from a boat or a mass of rocks.” I love many kinds of art, but modern art is especially exciting to me. Some of Laird’s creations remind me of the candy-coloured prints of one of my favourite Industrial Designers, Karim Rashid and his digital artist wife, Megan Lang. Though it should be noted that Laird hand draws all of his “lines, shapes, scratches, distortions and textures” into his printer’s software and then proofs and prints all of the pieces himself. He states that his work “occupies the space between hand made and digital” and that software is only used to realize the art as printed work. I don’t even know which one of his eye-popping knockouts I would start with. The selection on his site is mind-boggling and his palette runs the gamut from warm earthy tones to bright, bubble gum pinks. There’s a print for every mood and every colour scheme.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/JEVcJTTe65bldun9ggTmHgoO_500.jpg)
Onoko Series No. 1 by Campbell Laird Studio.
Brace yourselves, my kind readers, for I am in the mood for some serious colour. The following marathon of eye candy comes to you courtesy of the Campbell Laird Studio. Apparently, Mr. Laird is a former musician from a “successful Australian rock band” – but Google has been no help in this regard. Does anyone know which band this Tasmanian artist hails from? I’m embarrassed to admit, having been a part-time DJ in a previous lifetime, that I am totally stumped by this one. While Laird’s musical background eludes me, his bold and fun prints are definitely clear.
Laird has been painting and illustrating for over 20 years and is an award-winning artist. For a long time his memorable work has been seen in the homes and offices of celebrities and major corporations [from Trump Tower and The New York Times, to being featured in the Dwell Magazine Case Study Home], but he is now making his prints available to the public via his site. Campbell Laird is said to be “one of the pioneers of water based pigment ink printing” and uses no solvents of any kind, from the ink to the final varnish finish, making his artistic process completely eco.friendly.
An excerpt from his Artist Statement reads: “My medium of choice is water based archival pigment ink prints, in a similar way that Andy Warhol’s medium was silk screened prints. I have moved to this medium because the oil based paint and solvents I used in the past were environmentally unfriendly. It’s important for me as an Artist not to pollute the world that inspires my art. To this end, every element of my work - from the inks to the paper to the final varnish - is chosen with this thought in mind, without sacrificing the highest archival standards.” Laird also explains that he is inspired by organic elements and shapes, such as the “Tasmanian bush, a tree branch, waves trailing from a boat or a mass of rocks.”
I love many kinds of art, but modern art is especially exciting to me. Some of Laird’s creations remind me of the candy-coloured prints of one of my favourite Industrial Designers, Karim Rashid and his digital artist wife, Megan Lang. Though it should be noted that Laird hand draws all of his “lines, shapes, scratches, distortions and textures” into his printer’s software and then proofs and prints all of the pieces himself. He states that his work “occupies the space between hand made and digital” and that software is only used to realize the art as printed work. I don’t even know which one of his eye-popping knockouts I would start with. The selection on his site is mind-boggling and his palette runs the gamut from warm earthy tones to bright, bubble gum pinks. There’s a print for every mood and every colour scheme.
