amanda briggs at dear ada

rob nadeau.

I'm loving this painting of stripes by rob nadeau, an artist I first discovered on design sponge last summer. Many of his paintings are wonderfully active and clashing, plus his drawings are fabulous, but for some reason, I'm most drawn to the stripe paintings. Is it because the simple layout allows me to really study the colors he's chosen? I don't know for sure but there you have it. Color, pattern and calm. A wonderful combination of things, to say the least.

tay macintyre.

I'm really liking the metal work of tay macintyre. Inspired by nature and beautifully crafted, what more could a girl ask for? Plus they come from another talented Portland artist. Lovely on all counts as far as I'm concerned.

heather wilcoxon.

Hello whimsical paintings by heather wilcoxon. Hello patterned layout, little characters and playful motifs. Hello fabulousness.

jamie bennett.

When I stumbled across the enamel jewelry of jamie bennett my jaw just dropped. I love the composition and feel of the drawing in the enamel in it's own right. But to have achieved such a lovely image, in enamel, on the small surface of a brooch with such clarity and style, well yeah, that's pretty fabulous. Totally fabulous, as a matter of fact.

joel henriques.

This is such a nice mixed media piece by joel henriques. Simple, modern and fresh.

happy thanksgiving.

It's Thanksgiving here today. Near the top of my list of what I'm thankful for is unsurprisingly my two dogs, flora and ruppert. Never too concerned with the worries of the world, they constantly remind me of what's important and what is not.

Of course, there's so much more that I'm thankful for today, including all the wonderful people who visit dear ada. I'm looking forward to more art, more conversation and more celebration of what's good in the world. Thanks to all of the kind readers who keep coming back for the same. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving if you're celebrating today and have wonderful day even if you are not!

sakura snow.

It is one of those screaming blue sky mornings, windy and cold, the trees bare after a stormy few days. Starkly contrasted tree branches against a brilliant, bright sky. Today feels like this lovely diorama from sakura snow. I love it's simplicity and restraint. The trees feel like a pattern, a flat drawing that's been brought to 3 dimensional life. Just like this morning. So very, very nice!

space.

As I said before, I've been on a bit of a book buying frenzy lately. One of my best purchases has been this amazing book, space: japanese design solutions for compact living. It is fantastic to say the least, chock full of wonderful examples of simple, modern interior space solutions from Japan. Whether you live in a tiny space and need ideas to make it work, or you don't but still want to live in a smart, simple and aesthetically pleasing way, this is a great book to get your hands on!

marc cinq-mars.

I'm really loving this fabulous painting by marc cinq-mars. Love the texture, the composition, the motifs, the color. I could see it on a wall in my house in a heartbeat. Total covet and desire. Sigh.

mati rose mcdonough.

Sweetness abounds. This great little painting by mati rose mcdonough has a wonderful spirit and depth to it. I love the mix of pattern and texture, the order and the drips of the layout, the strange and lovely combinations of color. Nice, nice.