Head in the Clouds

A Cloud of 100,000 Illuminated Balloons Suspended Inside Covent Garden by Charles Pétillion French artist and photographer Charles Pétillion has just unveiled a cumulus cloud composed of 100,000 white balloons illuminated from the inside at London's Covent Garden. Titled 'Hearbeat,' the installation was created as part of the upcoming London Design Festival and stretches the length of the South Hall ceiling of the Market Building. Pétillion is known for his use of white balloons to fill unusual spaces, a photographic series he refers to as Invasions. The installation will be on view through September 27, 2015   Miniature Skulls Carved from Pearls Used to Create Anatomical Jewelry Producing work since 1974, Japanese artist and jeweler Shinji Nakaba infuses all matter of anatomical forms, skulls, and flowers into what he describes as "wearable sculptures." The pieces come in all shapes and sizes, but his most prolific series involves human and animal skulls carved from oyster pearls and attached to rings, necklaces, and brooches.     Journalist Spends Four Years Traversing India to Document Crumbling Subterranean Stepwells Before they Disappear Across India an entire category of architecture is slowly crumbling into obscurity, and you've probably never even heard it. Such was the case 30 years ago when Chicago journalist Victoria Lautman made her first trip to the country and discovered the impressive structures called stepwells. Like gates to the underworld, the massive subterranean temples were designed as a primary way to access the water table in regions where the climate is swelteringly dry during most months. Inspired by an urgency to document the wells before they disappear, Lautman has traveled to India numerous times in the last few years and taken upon herself to locate 120 structures across 7 states. She's currently seeking a publisher to help bring her discoveries and photographs to a larger audience.   Delicate Layered Paper Sculptures of Birds and Other Animals by Calvin Nicholls Straddling a line between 2D and 3D, paper artist Calvin Nicholls forms carefully cut and layered paper sculptures of animals that seem to break free from the surrounding matboard and hover just above the surface. To achieve the haut-relief effect, Nicholls first works from a drawing which he uses as a template for the various paper components. Using an X-ACTO knife, scalpels, and scissors he then carefully cuts pieces of paper and glues them in place. Each piece can take anywhere from a few weeks up to two years depending on scale and complexity.   A Beautiful Monarch Butterfly Metamorphosis Timelapse in HD Much has been written lately about the plight of the monarch, the most iconic butterfly in North America that may soon be headed for the endangered species list. Luckily there's a bit of hope. The U.S. government recently dedicated millions of dollars to foster the growth of milkweed, while organizations like Monarch Watch offers free milkweed for restoration projects while teaching people how to raise and release butterflies at home. This amazing HD timelapse from Front Yard Video shows the full metamorphosis of a monarch from a caterpillar to butterfly. What you see here is infuriatingly difficult to witness in person because after weeks of waiting the transformation to and from a chrysalis takes just a few minutes.   Michael Kagan's Space-Based Paintings Explore the Fatalistic Power of Manmade Machinery Heavily tinted blue paintings form space stations, spacesuits, and rockets just after blast. Michael Kagan paints these large-scale works to celebrate the man-made object—machinery that both protects and holds the possibility of instantly killing those that operate the equipment from the inside. To paint the large works, Kagan utilizes an impasto technique with thick strokes that are deliberate and unique, showing an aggression in his application of oil paint on linen.   Japanese Artist Places a Modern Spin on Centuries-Old Woodblock Prints Through Animated GIFs A Japanese artist is placing a modern spin on a centuries-old technique, animating Japanese woodblock prints in the style typically reserved for TV show recaps and continuously looping memes. The artist, who who goes by Segawa thirty-seven, uses Adobe Photoshop and After Effects to alter the static images and inlay elements of sci-fi and modern culture—bringing in Segways and alien spaceships into the fixed landscapes-turned-gifs.   Blue Morpho, Double Helix: New Print by Rafael Araujo Now Available from The Colossal Shop Where most of us simply see a butterfly fluttering in the breeze, artist Rafael Araujo sees an intricate mathematical framework governing the subtle motions of flight. Created as a part of the artist's Calculations series, an ongoing examination of the complexity of life, Blue Morpho, Double Helix teams Araujo's unique vision of the natural world with vivid color and precise lines. Originally hand drawn with only the aid of a ruler and protractor, Blue Morpho, Double Helix is now available as a premium archival-quality print exclusively from The Colossal Shop.