Etsy Find of the Day: Fréya Art & Design Prints

An utterly charming combination of words and image from Etsy seller Fréya Art & Design (aka London- and Australia-based illustrator Fréya Eté). Above: Let's Plant Our Dreams in This Garden

Without You I Would Be Lost

Home Print

This is Where the Music's Grown

All the Most Beautiful Things

Footprints

You Fill Me With Sunshine

Each image is available as an 8-by-8 or -11-inch ($45) or 11-by-11-inch ($75) print on heavyweight German etching paper. See all of Fréya's sweet sentiments right here.

The Artful Home: Mel Kadel

I was researching a freelance piece on San Francisco art galleries recently when I came across the work of Mel Kadel, who's showing at Hayes Valley's Fecal Face Dot Gallery in September. It was a jaw-on-floor moment.

The Los Angeles-based artist creates pen-and-ink illustrations that are surreal, darkly humorous, and utterly hypnotizing. I could get lost for hours in those delicate and intricate patterns, and in following the adventures of her imaginary heroine.

Kadel's originals run several hundred to several thousand dollars (a number of pieces are available through Santa Monica's Richard Heller Gallery), and notable collectors include artist Shepard Fairey, musicians Sheryl Crow and Mick Fleetwood, and actors Harrison Ford and Jason Lee.

But luckily for those of us on a slightly tighter budget, Kadel also has a limited-edition "Power Like a Flower" serigraph (above) available for just $20 through Oakland's Rowan Morrison.

If you're in the New York area, check out Kadel's current show, Sun Days, at Manhattan's Nancy Margolis Gallery through the end of the month. And Bay Areans, make a note of that Fecal Face exhibit in September.

In the meantime, you can see more of Kadel's work right here.

Over and Out

Image by her, from here

Happy May!

Etsy Find of the Day: Julia Pott Illustrations

One look and I fell hard for these endearing prints from London, England-based illustrator and animator Julia Pott -- deadpan animals will get me every time. Above: This is My Boyfriend, $20

All the Boys, $20

Cat and Dog, $20

I Can't Be Dealing With This, $20 (my latest obsession: foxes!)

It's No Big Deal, $20

Brussels, $20

Crush, $20

And speaking of crushes, Pott also has a selection of Valentine's Day cards that are sweet but most definitely not sappy (just be sure to order yours pronto to allow time for international shipping):

He Has a Goldfish With His Girlfriend Card, $3

But I Love You Card, $3

See all of Pott's Etsy offerings right here, watch a short film about her here, and check out more of her work here.

Mark Your Calendar: Irana Douer at Rare Device

Opening Saturday, January 31: Argentinian illustrator and painter Irana Douer's first-ever U.S. solo show, Hidden Treasures, at San Francisco's Rare Device.

Douer, who hails from Buenos Aires and is only 25, creates vibrantly colorful portraits of women that are at once innocent and sinister. The artist "is interested in how relationships, particular situations, or even ordinary things can affect a woman's life. Hidden Treasures ... explore(s) what's hidden, different and mysterious."

The opening reception (with Douer in attendance) is Saturday from 7 to 9 p.m., and the show will be up at Rare Device through March 3. If you're not in the area, check the Rare Device website to purchase Douer's original works online.

See more of Douer's artwork right here -- and click here to check out prints and household items bearing her illustrations.

Etsy Find of the Day: Devon Kelley-Yurdin

I'm utterly taken with these prints from Etsy seller, Pratt grad, and brand-new East Bay resident Devon Kelley-Yurdin. I especially love the combination of soft watercolor and pen-and-ink illustration in her pieces. Above: October 12-by-16-inch print, $30

Storm Clouds 11-by-14-inch print, $30

Just Balloons hand-bound book, $35

Recycle 11-by-14-inch print, $30

Two Hundred and Ninety Miles 11-by-14-inch print, $30

Check out all of Devon's Etsy offerings right here -- and see more of her work here.

P.S. Fingers crossed, I'll soon be the owner of this lovely original illustration/papercut from Ms. Kelley-Yurdin. Squeee!

Etsy Find of the Day: Jon Carling Illustrations

Oakland artist Jon Carling's pen-and-ink drawings are straight out of a strange dream -- or a dark, twisted fairy tale. Above: Holy Balloons, $15

The Vision, $10

Heather and Worried, $15

Scout Niblett, $15

The Bird Admirer, $15

Wolf and Rabbit, $15

Two, $10

See all of Carling's Etsy offerings right here -- and check out more of his work here.

Etsy Find of the Day: Lineanongrata Illustration

Too much wonderfulness from Etsy seller Lineanongrata (aka Gabian, France illustrator Julia Freund), whose art has a childlike quality without being childish or cutesy and a hypnotizing dreaminess. I found it impossible to choose just a few favorites. Above: Make Words Grow 2

The Scratchy Cat

Portrait of a Woman

Babylon

Whispering Trees

I Went to the Garden

Alonzo Looking for Friends

Make Words Grow

Alonzo Doggy Dream

Reaching for You

Sitting Little Man

The prints are $20 each right here.