2015 BN GIFT GUIDE: 10 BEAUTIFUL ARTS & DESIGN GIFTS NOW

A gift of art just might be the most beautiful gift of all.

Today we are sharing a BN curated gift list featuring exceptional works of art and design.

1. TRANSCENDING REALITY C-PRINTS -- ELLEN JANTZEN

Photographer Ellen Jantzen’s Transcending Reality series of C-Prints is mesmerizing. A framed large print would make a beautiful gift for your art-loving friend. We love A Resonant Chill, in particular.

Available at Saatchi Art.

2. A SUMMER NIGHTS WIND SCULPTURE -- PAUL DAV BABENBERK

A Summer Nights Wind is a whimsical, yet beautiful sculpture by Austrian sculptor Paul Dav Babenberk. Your extra-special garden-loving friend would likely love to receive this as a gift, if you can bear to part with it yourself. It stands almost 6 ft. high, rocks an amazing blue, and would look perfect in a secret garden.

Available at Saatchi Art.

3. VENUS / EDITION 4/7, DIGITAL COMPOSITE HYPERCOLLAGE -- YSABEL LEMAY

Canadian visual artist Ysable LeMay creates spectacular works through the process of hypercollaged digital compositions. She remixes reality to beautiful effect. She refers to her works as “Wonderful Other Worlds.”

Available at Saatchi Art.

4. GRANZIOLI X COLLECTION VASES -- FABIO MARIA MICUCCI & ANDREA ZILIO

Maestro Andrea Zilio created the Granzioli collection, an exclusive series of vases for iconic designer Ralph Pucci. These unique roughly prismatic Murano glass vases look like they are made out of crushed ice.

Only 99 of these vases were made. They are each signed. Select from 14 brilliant colors.

Available at Ralph Pucci.

5. SANCTUARY GLASS VESSELS --  KAYO YOKOYAMA

Japanese artist Kayo Yokoyama creates exquisite beautifully engraved glass sculptures and vessels. The artist uses hand-held motor drills with small diamond-tipped burrs to carve into the glass surface.

Yokoyama aims to convey ‘sanctuary,' with trees and as a favorite theme. Many pieces also feature houses, churches, and castles.

Available at Lost Bear Gallery.

6. BOTANICAL CERAMICS -- HITOMI HOSONO

Ceramic artist Hitomi Hosono creates impossibly intricate porcelain pieces, influenced by the complicated shapes and textures of a variety of garden botanicals. Hosono forms multiple layers of delicate flowers, leaves and sprigs, in relief, to create an embarassment of riches.

Available at Adrian Sasson.

7. PORTRAIT OF ICE SERIES, PIGMENT PRINTS -- CALEB CAIN MARCUS

Artist Caleb Cain Marcus is obsessed with the beauty of ice. It is evident in his series of large scale photos, entitled A Portrait of Ice.

This series, which took 2 years to create, instantly transports you to an icy landscape, oddly devoid of visible horizon. While the photos were shot in Argentina, the images look as if they are from an alien planet.

The artist’s work are currently held in the permanent collections of nearly 20 US museums including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, in NY.

Produced in limited edition, 9 pigment prints are available for purchase at 1st Dibs.

And, the recently published monograph, A Portrait of Ice, also makes a beautiful gift.

8. UNTITLED FROM THE STUDY SISIMIUT -- BY JOËL TETTAMANTI

Artist Joël Tettamanti’s work, Untitled from the Study of Sisimiut, would make a beautiful gift to grace a friend’s ski chalet. Bright, graphic forms make winter feel cheery. Produced in limited edition, each Lamda Print printed to order.

Available at 1st Dibs.

9. UNTITLED --  KAZUKO INOUE

Japanese artist Kazuko Inoue’s abstract Untitled painting is totally modern, yet its colors are reminiscent of Vasily Kandinsky, and its frank forms feel a bit Matisse-like. Inoue has a BFA and an MFA from Michigan State University.

Inoue’s work has been shown in solo and group exhibitions throughout the US. She lives and works in Pennsylvania.

Acrylic on canvas. Available at 1st Dibs.

10. CHEMTRAIL COCKTAIL --  FRANCO DEFRANCESCA

Artist Franco DeFrancesca investigates the links between art and memory, history and technology, using digital imaging to coax abstractions out of his subjects.

Each piece is made of multiple layers of wood, which serves as a canvas for color-packed digital prints. Each pieces is completely coated in resin, for an ultra high gloss finish.

Available at 1st Dibs.

Read more about Beautiful Gifts, as it relates to Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact including BN 2015 Gift Guide: 10 Beautiful Books to Give Now, Extraordinary Gifts Now and 2015 BN Gift Guide: 10 Beautiful Food & Drink Gifts To Give Now.

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by Ellen Jantzen. Courtesy of Saatchi Art. A Resonant Chill. Transcending Reality Series.
2. Image: by Ellen Jantzen. Courtesy of Saatchi Art. A Resonant Chill. Transcending Reality Series.
3. Image: Courtesy of Saatchi Art. A Summer Nights Wind, by Paul Dav Babenberk.
4. Image: by Ysable LeMay. Courtesy of Saatchi Art. Venus/ edition 4/7. Digital print on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Baryta.
5. Image: Courtesy of Ralph Pucci. Dark Amethyst Vase. Granzioli X Collection, designed by Fabio Maria Micucci. Murano blown glass, crafted by Maestro Andrea Zilio.
6. Image: Courtesy of Lost Bear Gallery. Sanctuary Glass Vessel. Kayo Yokoyama. Engraved glass.
7. Image: Courtesy of Hitomi Hosono. Botanical Porcelain Vessel.
8. Image: by Caleb Cain Marcus. Courtesy of 1st Dibs. Perito Moreno Plate I, Patagonia. A Portrait of Ice series. Pigment print.
9. Image: by Caleb Cain Marcus. Courtesy of 1st Dibs. A Portrait of Ice series. Pigment print.
10. Image by Joël Tettamanti. Courtesy of 1st Dibs. Untitled from the study Sisimiut. Lamda print.
11. Image: by Kazuko Inoue. Courtesy of 1st Dibs. Untitled. Acrylic on canvas.
12. Image: by Franco DeFrancesca. Courtesy of 1st Dibs. Chemtrail Cocktail. Digital print on wood.
13. Image: by Ysabel LeMay. Courtesy of 1st Dibs. Cosmic Nursery / Edition 1/7. Digital print on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Baryta.
14. Image: Courtesy of Hitomi Hosono. Botanical Porcelain Vessel.
15. Image: by BN App - Download now!
16. Image: by Ellen Jantzen. Courtesy of Saatchi Art. A Resonant Chill. Transplanting Reality.