Source: Don’t Panic Online

Patrick Dougherty is yet another contemporary sculptor whose eco-friendly artwork blurs the line between art and the environment. By manipulating saplings into spectacular shapes and images, he flawlessly builds green artwork that has garnered worldwide praise. Dougherty is yet another artist interested in earth-friendly artwork, and his success confirms that the green art trend is here to stay.

Source: Running In Circles

Source: Don’t Panic Online


Patrick Dougherty was born in 1945 and grew up in North Carolina. As a child, he enjoyed building forts and shelters in the wooded areas around his house, both of which were habits upon which he would draw later in life. Though Dougherty left the state to get his Master’s degree in 1969 at the University of Iowa, he eventually returned to study art history and sculpture at the University of North Carolina. Dougherty hoped to incorporate his love of nature into his art, so he began experimenting with saplings.

Source: Sarasota Visual Art

Source: Stick Work

By weaving them together and manipulating the shape of the saplings, Dougherty has been able to create extraordinary pieces of living art. In 1982, Dougherty’s first work, “Maple Body Wrap,” was included in an exhibition sponsored by the North Carolina Museum of Art. Since then, Dougherty has crafted more than 200 sculptures. His work is so popular that his journey as an artist has been featured in both a book, Stickwork, and a documentary titled Bending Sticks: the Sculpture of Patrick Dougherty.

Source: Stick Work

Source: Wikimedia Commons

What began as small-scale sculptures has now transformed into enormous pieces of art that take truckloads of saplings to create. He has been commissioned to create pieces for some of the world’s most prestigious destinations, including Korea, Australia, France, Italy and the United States.

Source: If It’s Hip It’s Here

To listen to an interview with Patrick Dougherty, click here.

A grand prize winner at the 2012 Vimeo Awards, this film–among other things–reminds us of how we’re not so different from turtles. Enjoy!

Source: Gessato

In the past, public art was confined to commemorative pieces, murals, or architectural structures. These days, the umbrella of public art encompasses a variety of art forms including land art, graffiti, political art, architecture, and more. One contemporary artist, Florentijn Hofman, creates striking, bold, and joyful pieces that force the average passerby to stop and take notice.

Florentijn Hofman is a Dutch conceptual artist known for his impressively large sculptures often inspired by ordinary objects. In 2007, Hofman created a 26 meter tall rubber duck called “Spreading Joy Around the World.” The floating duck has been to 12 cities so far, and according to the artist, will bring happiness to people worldwide by reminding them of their childhood. Currently, the gigantic rubber duck is in Hong Kong, where it will remain until June 2013.

Source: The Telegraph

Source: Twisted Sifter

“Spreading Joy Around the World” is not Hofman’s only piece that demands attention. In 2011, he created a huge yellow rabbit lying on its back in the middle of Örebro, Sweden. The bunny, called “Big Yellow Rabbit,” is made from thousands of Swedish shingles and other Swedish materials. This piece is yet another incredible example of how Hofman’s artwork so easily colors previously bland landscapes.

Source: Inhabitat

Source: Wikimedia Commons

In 2004, Hofman drew attention to a clump of buildings scheduled for demolition by painting the entire structure in bright blue. He has created dozens of other sculptures and artwork over the years, yet each have a cartoon-like, light quality in common. Here’s a video of him creating a giant sculpture of a bear holding a pillow:

Source: Flickr

Source: Bettery Magazine

While Hofman’s style of artwork is decidedly unique, there are other contemporary artists whose work seems to draw from some of the same influences. Dutch artist Henk Hofstra paints bright, eye-catching art that stands out in the same way as Hofman’s.

Source: Wooster Collective

Source: Zeutch

Source: Wooster Collective