Modern Hieroglyphs

Man has been painting on walls, clothing, artifacts, and himself (or herself) since the beginning of time. Kids and grownups alike can’t resist the idea of a big blank wall and a crayon, even though their moms or the law have threatened consequences if they dare use those walls as big canvases. But these days, using almost everything as a potential canvas has not only become permissible; it’s become downright respectable.

Graffiti’s moment has come and designers are recruiting street taggers to customize even unexpected objects, turning them into functional works of art. Take a peek at how On Madison has paired ancient scripts with modern day items that are referencing these ancient languages in a fresh way.

Handwritten Japanese Katakanakatakana

Porter Teleo‘s “Signs and Signifiers” Hand Painted Wallpaperporter-teleo

Robert Loughlin‘s “The Brute” Chair via Casa Moderno

Laughlin-The-Brute-ChairPorter Teleo‘s “Tangled” Handpainted Wallcovering

Porter-Teleo-Tangled 1Ancient Pallava Script

Ancient-Pallava-Script

Kelly Wearstler & Shantell Martin Collaborationkelly-wearstler-+-shantell-martinEgyptian Hieroglyphs

Hieroglyphs

Los Angeles graffiti artist RETNA paints the Pasadena Museum of California ArtRetna-Pasadena

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In keeping on trend with the graffiti craze, On Madison has commissioned local graffiti artist Peter Lloyd Jones (aka GUTS) to customize a late 19th century Asian scroll table as well as a pair of mid-century French Bergere chairs. We’ll unveil the smashing results in a future blog post a few weeks from now. Stay tuned!

French-BergereScroll

 

 
 

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