imagination Archives - The Curated House

The Curated Collection | Vicki Smith

I have already confessed to you many-a-time my love affair with water. I was a water baby from birth. The weightlessness and adventure of defying gravity in the clear, azure liquid of my backyard pool enabled me to dance the way I did in my dreams. Graceful, fluid movements like an elegant figure draped in sheer chiffon – that was how it appeared in my imagination.

Vicki Smith’s latest collection takes me right back to those endless hours of imaginative play from my childhood. I find that her choice of perspective emphasizes the weightless defiance of gravity, the suspension and fluidity of movement while breaking the surface of the water. The anonymity of the figures allows me to imagine it is me doing that silent, graceful dance. And the vintage-style bathing costumes simply charm me.

As I project myself into these scenes of relaxation and play, stillness and movement, I am somehow calmed and disarmed as if I’ve spent the afternoon in the pool. Perhaps painting, like water, has the power to heal? It most certainly has the power to transport.

Smith’s next solo exhibition will be held August 10 – 24, 2013 at Bau-Xi Gallery, Toronto. Well worth the visit for a dip into the waters of Vicki’s imagination.

Happy Monday!

xo
s.

Magnetic Wallpaper Ignites the Imagination | Sian Zeng

I have a confession to make. I am a huge fan of stories. I think storytelling is a precious art form and that children should be taught from a very young age to tell them, to listen to them, and to always create them in their imaginations. Stories are what connect us with each other and with history. Stories connect us to deeper meaning and greater thought and higher inspiration.

It is my love of story that has caused me to fall head-over-heels for this product I’m sharing with you today. Yes, the illustrations are delightful. Yes, the magnetic concept is ingenious. But it is the power to ignite the imagination that holds the key to my heart with this one. Feast your eyes {and your imaginations} on this brilliant wallpaper collection. Aptly named “Magic and Fun,” this uniquely interactive wall covering by Sian Zeng invites visual narratives that evolve through interaction.

Can’t you just picture the hours upon hours of storytelling that would take place on these walls? Friends would always want to come and play at your house so as to continue writing their scripts and plays. And bedtime stories would take on an entirely grander dimension of creativity and interplay.

A lovely stage for the imagination, it is easy to see how every fairytale ever told might come to life on the walls of a room “dressed for the theatre” in Sian Zeng‘s paper.

All images via Sian Zeng

In my imagination, the dry-erase thought bubble {shown above} would create endless opportunities for hilarious photo shoots. Wouldn’t it be fun to wallpaper a dining room with a paper from the Magic and Fun collection? Just think of how much everyone’s ribs would hurt after the laughter that would ensue from telling stories with friends over dinner, creating “thought bubbles” for each other throughout the night? Your home and hospitality would no doubt be the talk of the town.

How do you keep your imagination alive? What materials or collections have encouraged you to think outside the box lately?

xo
s.