Designer Wallpaper and Wall Décor Company Introduces New Kelly Hoppen Wall Art Collection

Tags: vinyl wall art, Kelly Hoppen

Monroe Township, NJ-Graham & Brown, a leading designer wallpaper and wall art retailer, recently unveiled its newest collection of canvas décor by the elegant and inspired Kelly Hoppen.

  The new designer wall art collection consists of nine culturally inspired canvas pieces. Each piece is reasonably priced so buyers can break in the New Year with a fresh look without breaking the bank.

  "This collection reflects all aspects of Kelly’s signature look," said Mark Radford, director of design, marketing and home for Graham & Brown. "It gives décor lovers a chance to decorate their homes in a contemporary style at an affordable price."

  The collection features exclusive works from Hoppen, including the eastern inspired fiery red "Buddhist Dragon" canvas and "Karma", a sleeping Buddha with metallic foil detail. From the west, Hoppen introduces "Coat of Arms" and "Coronation", a tribute to the 50th anniversary of Her Majesty the Queen’s Coronation.

  Kelly Hoppen first worked with Graham & Brown in 2010 with her exclusive designer wallpaper collection comprised of over 40 patterns. Her simple, opulent style was inspired by natural textured surfaces, minerals and fabric weaving.

  "My wallpaper for Graham & Brown makes it easy to add timeless elegance to a home," said Hoppen. "I wanted to demonstrate how bold accent colors and beautiful rich tones in muted finishes can work alongside a neutral base."

  Both the wall art and wallpaper collections can be found exclusively at Graham & Brown’s official online store, www.grahambrown.com.

  Graham & Brown is a widely acclaimed designer wallpaper company involved in offering creative decorating solutions for homes, offices, restaurants and hotels. Headquartered in Blackburn, UK Graham & Brown has offices in countries all over the world. To learn more about Graham & Brown and its services, visit http://www.grahambrown.com.

Source from: http://www.prleap.com/pr/184679/

Alleviate your walls with Uttermost wall art

Tags: cheap wall art, Canvas Wall Art

  Are you having plain, boring wall spaces begging to be decorated? Embellish them with brilliant pieces of Uttermost wall art. They will perk up your walls as well as the spirits of those who reside within them.

  There are plenty of wall art ideas to pep up your walls. They can be colorful or black and white. Select a method which is suitable to you taste. Here are some ideas which you might find useful.

Print Wall Art: There are many ways to do wall arts but none as easy as print and paste. These decorative wall art are one of the least messy ideas to make your walls attractive. Select beautiful designs and creative ideas, then print and paste them.

  Canvas Wall Art: This method has double benefits. Apart from creating a pleasant atmosphere they also are a great way to showcase your artistic talents. They can be big ones that cover whole walls, or you can opt for offset canvas wall arts. The offset variation offers more opportunities to be creative as it is divided into 3 to 5 panels.

  metal wall art: These are made from various metals such as aluminum, stainless steel and bronze. They are complex and lend a rich look to your walls. Cities, sceneries and much more can be depicted through these unique home décor wall art.

These are all conventional wall art ideas. But daring people will want to experiment with some contemporary ideas. Here are some.

Basic Contemporary wall arts: These are cost-effective ideas. You can make use of different patterns, shapes and colors to make collages. Use spray paint and glue to make these Styrofoam wall arts attractive.

  Contemporary metal wall art: An intelligent use of spray paints can create decorative wall arts with a metal like appearance. Wood and Styrofoam surfaces would be ideal for these ideas. Metallic shapes can be added to these to lend it more originality.

Kitchen Wall Art: Brightly colored prints and frames can enliven your kitchen. Different sorts of coffee art can be done on a Styrofoam surface to make it attractive. Using wall clocks that match the theme of your kitchen is also a great idea.

Wall Art Sculptures: These home décor wall art can be a bit expensive but it is worth it. They will lend a classic appearance to your room. It will also present an opportunity to flaunt your crafting skills.

  These creative ideas can make your living space an enchanting place. Getting an Uttermost wall art online is an easy and convenient way to make your living space beautiful. So get one from eFurnitureMart.com. There are plenty of options available at this online site.

Woodlawn Museum observes holidays with high teas of Christmas past

Mistletoe and holly berries, garland and crimson candles have transformed the middle kitchen into a festive tearoom at Woodlawn Museum, a historic estate at the heart of Ellsworth. China clinked softly on Wednesday afternoon as guests examined their delicate cups and saucers, waiting for the teapot to be passed at tables draped in red cloths.

“People give us the teacups,” said Woodlawn Executive Director Joshua Campbell Torrance as he filled his cup with freshly brewed tea, a special blend with a hint of peach. “They’ve been collected over the years. We have more than we’ll ever use.”

Woodlawn is the 180-acre estate formerly owned by the prestigious Black family, once movers and shakers of business in coastal Maine. Today, it’s a 19th century museum, a center for public workshops, the host of the country’s longest running summer antique show and the town’s most popular sledding destination.

The high tea tradition began with Mrs. Irma Eliason, who arrived in Camden in 1916 to work as caretaker of the Black household. She served hot cocoa and cookies to the children who would often sled on the property, and frequently she would serve visitors tea each afternoon.

Several years ago, the museum revived the tradition in the summertime, and now they carry it through the holiday season.

On Wednesday, The Scarlet Dames Chapter of the Red Hat Society traveled from Newport to attend the first high tea of the season. With their fancy red hats and elaborate fascinators, the enthusiastic group made up the majority of the tea party.

“This is the first time most of us have been here,” said The Scarlet Dames Queen Mum Rebecca Johnson. Most of the women arrived early to explore the beautiful brick house, admiring the marble fireplaces and gold-framed paintings of members of the Black family.

“Each cup is bone china, I checked,” said Jean Beckmann of Ellsworth, who was invited to high tea as a guest of The Scarlet Dames.

Beckman first visited Woodlawn in 1949. The holiday high tea was her 25th time visiting the estate.

“My aunt, who owned a hotel in town, told me to go to the Black House because there’s a woman there every day who serves tea and crumpets,” recalls Beckmann, who remembers meeting Elaison. “They stopped serving tea here for quite a while. That they brought it back is wonderful. It’s like coming home.”

George Nixon Black Jr. was the last of three generations of the Black family to occupy the household. He willed the estate to the Hancock County Trustees of Public Reservations in 1928, and they have maintained it for public use ever since.

Elaison remained. Living in the house, she cared for the estate, guided visitors on tours and continued to serve afternoon tea. Many people in Ellsworth still remember her thick Swedish accent and kind demeanor.

In he 1950s, she gave a tour of the house on public radio. The interview was recorded, and now visitors to Woodlawn can listen to her voice on a handheld device as they walk through the house.

Though not as famous as Portland’s Victoria Mansion for its Christmas decorations, Woodlawn is one of the holiday highlights of Ellsworth.

The first Monday of November is the estate’s “Decorating Day,” when all the organizations and companies who have volunteered to decorate arrive at the museum with holiday trees, sparkling table arrangements, poinsettias and wreaths, and split up to deck the halls.

“We love it and hate it at the same time,” said Torrance. “It’s organized chaos.”

This year’s decorators were the garden clubs of Bar Harbor, Bucksport, Ellsworth, Franklin and Surry, as well as M.M. Julz Christmas Shop and Wallace Interiors.

Each group is designated a room and the healthy competition begins.

“It’s the first time we’ve had every single room decorated,” Torrance said. “Before, the upstairs rooms weren’t decorated — we didn’t have enough groups.”

Christmas Day wasn’t special to Col. John Black and his wife Mary, who built Woodlawn in the 1820s. Records show the colonel worked in his office writing business letters on one Christmas, and their son wasn’t expected to travel home from his studies. But this is no surprise, since Christmas wasn’t officially recognized in Maine until 1858. Before that time, Thanksgiving was considered the more important holiday.

Starting in the mid-19th century, during the Victorian Period, people in America started to celebrate Christmas with gusto, exchanging gifts, gathering as families and feasting. The Christmas tree, a German tradition, became popular at that time as well, after Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain brought one into the palace for the holidays.

That is the era that Woodlawn celebrates during the holidays — a time when Christmas became associated with elaborate displays and joyous gatherings.

The high teas are an intimate way to experience the Victorian decorations and have earned such a reputation that they have already been sold out this year, though Woodlawn is always hoping for more people to come on the daily tours.

“The ambiance was beautiful, very good service, tasty goodies and nice company,” said Scarlet Dame Pauly Michaud of Newport, critiquing the tea. She sat at a round table with four other ladies in red hats, sharing the last lemon squares and finger sandwiches.

The teapots were empty, and the room quieted as guests rose from their seats and wandered down the main hall to admire the Victorian decorations once more in the darkening rooms of Woodlawn.

http://bangordailynews.com/2011/12/11/living/woodlawn-museum-celebrates-holidays-with-high-teas-of-christmas-past/

Mother Nature warms to 2011 wreath sales

Mother Nature smiled on Christmas decorators this fall. The extended warm and dry weather allowed homeowners to hang their greens in shorts and shirt-sleeves.

It put a smile on Jay Weeter's face as well. He has four wreaths at his home.

He also had a number of them to sell. And sell he did.

"We actually get a lot of our wreaths ready for display in early August," said Weeter, manager at Sioux City's Hobby Lobby store on Southern Hills Drive. "There are a lot of craft shows in August and people like to sell them at those shows."

A trend this year involved neon greens and pinks accenting traditional wreath arrangements.

"People like the flashy colors," Weeter said. "We don't have much of the neon colors left."

In his five years at the store, Weeter said 2011 tops the charts for sales of wreaths, outdoor lights and other outdoor Christmas decorations. The primary reason: Weather.

"This is a strong market for us and the weather has been very good to us this year," Weeter said. "that's the No. 1 factor. It was so nice all fall, people weren't hampered by snow or cold weather in getting their decorations up."

Sales of inside items, he said, have always been strong at the store.

As is the case with most retailers, Hobby Lobby will only sell artificial wreaths. Strings of lights are often weaved into these flame-retardant wreaths. Customers may purchase additional lights as well.

"I'll take one and put three strings of lights in, because I like Christmas lights," Weeter said.

"There are people who buy three or four wreaths. They'll put matching wreaths on doors and have one inside the entryway, and one over the garage," he said.

It's not uncommon to sell four or five wreaths to one customer. An uncommon figure is 30. But that's what a pair of women wanted recently, as they headed up the downtown decorating efforts in their community.

The past several Christmas seasons have also seen local residents purchasing more wreaths for display in cemeteries. Weeter said his store has special stands and wreaths for those wishing to decorate the grave sites of loved ones during this special time of year.

Interestingly, the origin of the Christmas wreath is found with people who lived prior to Christ. It is said that people gathered evergreen wreaths in the dark, cold months of winter across eastern Europe and would light them. The ensuing fire signaled a hope that one day the warmth of spring -- and its renewed life -- would return.

Christians adopted the tradition and began using Advent wreaths to symbolize the everlasting light and life that Christmas brings.

Read more: http://siouxcityjournal.com/lifestyles/home-and-garden/mother-nature-warms-to-wreath-sales/article_c68be377-d835-5421-b2ea-dee7b373e417.html#ixzz1gUhTvIcn

Decline and Rise: Three Exhibits Prove the Continued Splendor of Indian Art

Ideally, art exhibits offer an "ah-ha" moment, when you stand transfixed and realize, "This speaks to me like nothing before." All three India shows now in San Francisco contain pieces that scream "ah-ha" — that challenge your assumptions and reveal the massive contradictions of a culture that has enthralled outsiders for millennia.
"Maharaja: The Splendors of India's Royal Courts" shows an India subjected to British colonialism. Many of the most opulent treasures on display — the tear-drop ornament made of gold, rubies, emeralds, and diamonds; the public throne embossed with gold sheets; and the tamburi instrument laden with ivory — are now the property of British museums.
The humiliation that India faced under British rule is seen most pointedly in The Delhi Durbar of 1903, English painter Roderick Mackenzie's intoxicating panorama of a royal elephant procession. Held to commemorate the ascension of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra as the Emperor and Empress of India, the procession had Indian maharajas ("great kings") in the rear, behind Edward VII's brother and the British viceroy. Mackenzie's wall-sized study lays bare the Indians' second-class status on their own soil. Some maharajas benefitted from British occupation, even welcoming the English as saviors. The British, in fact, resuscitated India's maharaja pecking order, cultivating and rewarding loyal leaders.
Maharajas still exist, but they lost their hierarchical power after India's independence in 1947, and lost their financial lifeline in the early 1970s, when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi — facing an economic crisis — eliminated their government subsidies. "Maharaja" covers this history in exquisite detail, revealing the faces (and bling) of the playboys and leaders instrumental in shaping India for centuries.
By contrast, "Demons, Deities, and Dudes with 'Staches: Indian Avatars by Sanjay Patel," is a playful consideration of figures who form a pantheon of devotion in Hinduism. Vishnu, Shiva, and their relations get the cartoon treatment from Patel, an artist at Pixar Animation Studios. If you've seen Patel's books, like The Little Book of Hindu Deities or Ramanaya: Divine Loophole, you're familiar with these works: big eyes, wild colors, silly set-ups. The deities' lighthearted doings are the brainchild of a son of Indian immigrants — a California kid who reinvented his parents' icons for a generation that might know little of these gods' epic exploits.

Six blocks away, at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, "The Matter Within" surveys contemporary artists with roots in India who are taking radical approaches to their subjects. In photos, performance artist Nikhil Chopra inhabits characters that are vaudevillian products of British influence and self-inflated aristocracy. Designers Jiten Thukral and Sumir Tagra give us mock-consumerist objects (a 30-foot pink dinosaur made of bottles; a cabinet full of strawberry bottles covered with faces of young Indian men) that are sly commentaries on globalization. Sudarshan Shetty puts a traditional Indian earthenware pot on a moving conveyer belt that symbolizes mechanized "progress." Photographer Sunil Gupta depicts an erotic relationship between an Indian man and a Frenchman in Paris, where they visit bathhouses and engage in risky sex. And video/photo/performance artist Pushpamala N, who is based in Bangalore, takes well-known scenes from film, art, pop culture, and religion, and re-imagines them with herself in the center, as in her perfectly subtle riff on Mary Ellen Mark's famous Indian circus series. Pushpamala N works with British-born photographer Clare Arni to fine-tune her India 2.0 images — a collaboration that's a powerful bookend to the colonialist backdrop of "Maharaja."
India has long been a country at a crossroads, amalgamating old and new — including the cultures of foreign people. The British left their mark. Muslim rulers left theirs, particularly with the Taj Mahal, India's top tourist attraction. Sanjay Patel, Pushpamala N, and the other artists in "The Matter Within" are the latest in a long line of India's descendants who can be called expressive amalgamators. They borrow from the past but are not beholden to it. Their artwork practically winks at the viewer. And in that wink is the edge of an "ah-ha." Whether you go over the edge isn't important — just that the edge is there in the first place.

President to visit Austria before attending crucial G20 summit

"The visit is significant in the context of the worsening European debt crisis," Shi said. "It will have a profound impact on China-Europe relations."

Hu's visit to Europe, including the G20 summit, has raised hopes that China might make a firmer commitment to the European bailout fund, Agence France-Presse reported on Sunday.

China and Austria will sign seven intergovernmental framework agreements on economic and trade matters, the environment, water conservation, education and culture during Hu's visit, according to Vice-Foreign Minister Fu Ying.

Austria has advanced technology in environmental protection, new energies and materials, which are high on China's development agenda.

"So the two countries share many possibilities to cooperate, and can achieve win-win results," Shi said.

China "hopes that the green economy will become a new growth point", Fu said, adding that China is also interested in green transport, eco-agriculture and life sciences.

China is Austria's largest trading partner outside the EU, with trade worth $6.1 billion last year, a 26-percent increase from 2009.

Trade in the first eight months of this year reached $4.6 billion, up 18.4 percent year-on-year. During the past three years, bilateral trade has been growing by an average of 30 percent each year.

Thanks to its robust manufacturing sectors and flourishing small- and medium-sized enterprises, Austria is relatively unscathed in the EU debt crisis.

Austria plays an important role in boosting other European economies, said Lu Yonghua, who served as ambassador to Austria from 2000 to 2007.

Among the deals to be signed will be one between an Austrian art company and the China Arts and Entertainment Group to boost Chinese art in Austria and other parts of Europe.

It will be signed against the backdrop of the Chinese leadership recently deciding to boost its cultural sector in line with the country's standing as the world's second-largest economy.

Lu said Hu's schedule reflects the spirit of the recent high-profile Party meeting that emphasized the rising significance of culture in boosting soft power.

China and Austria have maintained close cultural exchanges. More than 200 cultural events have been organized in Austria and China this year as Austria hosts the "Year of China".

Austria, seen as a haven of art and music, has been a key attraction for Chinese tourists, with 23,000 visiting the country last year.

After Austria, Hu will fly to Cannes, France, to attend the G20 summit.

Eurozone leaders reached a deal to tackle their crisis on Wednesday but finding sufficient funding to recapitalize debt-ridden European banks remains a headache.

Some European leaders have been looking for China to help bail out the EU, according to media reports.

China has ruled out any specific buying plan for the EU financial stability fund.

Some analyst have warned that it is not reasonable to rely on emerging economies to solve Europe's difficulties.

Neither is it realistic for Europe to pin too much hopes on China since the debt problem will only be solved by European countries themselves, said Qu Xing, president of the China Institute of International Studies.