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The Spontaneous Sketchbook of Photographer Jashim Salam

To see more of Jashim’s photography, follow @jashimsalam on Instagram.

Documentary photographer Jashim Salam’s (@jashimsalam) childhood heroes didn’t carry a camera and chase a story — they pulled a rickshaw. “My fascination with rickshaw has never faded away,” he says. “Like for many other Bengali people, it is the best type of ride in the whole world.” For the past five years, Jashim, who exhibits internationally, has been keeping a visual diary of his rickshaw rides, all with the same perspective, and he now shares them on @the_dailyride.

The intimate and personal moments he posts compose what Jashim calls his “spontaneous sketchbook,” images unburdened by the pressure of technical perfection he seeks in his professional practice. “Bangladesh is a vibrant country, full of life and so many things happening always,” says Jashim. “I always seek those simple, beautiful, human emotions and feelings that matter most.”

photography, documentary, art, sketchbook, Bangladesh, rickshaw, transportation, Jashim Salam, the_dailyride, instagram,

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Celebrating the ‘Strength, Power and Beauty in Diversity’ with Justina Blakeney

This week, we’ll be sharing the stories of African-American community members in celebration of #BlackHistoryMonth, which runs throughout February in the US.

Designer, artist, blogger and author Justina Blakeney (@justinablakeney) believes our homes should be reflections of ourselves. “In my case, that means free-spirited, multicultural, creative and a little bit wild!” says The Jungalow (@thejungalow) founder. “There is strength, power and beauty in diversity, and that translates to my work: I love to combine unexpected colors, patterns and textures and enjoy pulling things together that may not traditionally be seen together.”

Justina grew up in Berkeley, California, during the 1980s. “My parents were married when interracial marriage was still illegal in most states,” says Justina, whose father identifies as African-American and mother as Jewish-American. “They taught me that the right choices aren’t usually the easy choices. They taught me that with hard work and perseverance the sky is the limit.”

photography, BlackHistoryMonth, AfricanAmerican, diversity, interior design, art, Justina Blakeney, Jungalow, instagram,

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Celebrating the Social Impact and Technique of Jordan Casteel’s Art

This week, we’ll be sharing the stories of African-American community members in celebration of #BlackHistoryMonth, which runs throughout February in the US.

Vulnerability, openness, humanity — these are the qualities Jordan Casteel (@jordanmcasteel) offers in every brush stroke. Her work invites the viewer to confront the ways her community is represented. “I have a twin brother and an older brother,” says the New York-based artist. “They’re the ones who continually inspire my practice around black men in particular, because I always felt keenly observant of my surroundings and the way they were experiencing the world.”

Her family is rooted in social justice – her grandfather, Whitney Moore Young, Jr., was a central figure in the US civil rights movement – and his legacy has been ever-present in her life and in her work. “It is important to me that within my practice, people recognize me not only for the social impact of this work, but just the sheer degree of strength of material, color play and technique,” says Jordan. “I am not just a painter of people and stories. Within that, I’m also implementing myself as a black woman into a history that has for centuries negated my story, or not seen it as being as impactful or masterful.”

photography, art, painting, civil rights, Jordan Casteel, BlackHistoryMonth, instagram,

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Art and Nature Collide in Lucy and Lily’s Jewelry and Art

Check out more of Lucy and Lily’s work by following @peachesandkeen on Instagram.

Surrounded by the wild flora of Melbourne’s Dandenong Ranges, Lucy Hearn and Lily Daley (@peachesandkeen) describe their workshop spot as a forest paradise. For the past seven years, the best friends have created nature-inspired jewelry and colorful art constructed from foraged plants. These “botanical calamity artworks” are constructed completely by hand, without any computer editing. “Sometimes they take hours to create as we source and arrange each individual detail,” the women explain. “And then they are gone with a gust of wind!”

Both Lucy and Lily are moms, but their work remains a focus plus an artistic outlet outside of their everyday lives. In one caption Lucy and Lily suggest another name for the children — “interns in training.”

photography, art, crafts, botanical, jewelry, Peaches and Keen, earrings, Melbourne, Australia, instagram,

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An Artist’s Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

To see more of his work, follow @kadirnelson on Instagram.

“All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.” —Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

This is one of artist and writer Kadir Nelson’s (@kadirnelson) favorite quotes from the American civil rights leader, whose birthday is celebrated on January 16. “I admire Dr. King’s faith in his beliefs and willingness to demonstrate the powerful example of intelligence, spiritual tenacity and hard work,” says Kadir, who is based in Los Angeles. “Individuals like Dr. King, who embrace their inner hero, are recurring subjects in my work. He, and all of those who fought against social injustice, paved a way for creative people like myself who stand on their shoulders — and are now free to express ourselves creatively in fields that were not as open as they are today.”

Art, painting, MLK, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., civil rights, social justice, Kadir Nelson, Instagram,

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One Man’s Trash is Artur Bordalo’s Art

To see more of Artur’s work, follow @b0rdalo_ii on Instagram.

They say one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. For Portuguese artist Artur Bordalo (@b0rdalo_ii), trash is the inspiration for his work, a series of sculptures designed to highlight issues of pollution and waste. Look at the form of one of Artur’s larger-than-life flamingos, bears or skunks, and then look again, but closer. “Damaged bumpers, burnt garbage cans, tires and appliances are just some of the objects that can be identified when you go into detail,” says Artur of the materials he uses, which are found in junkyards, abandoned factories or through corporate recycling programs. “I’m inspired by my life experiences and everything around me — the real world.”

photography, recycling, environment, art, sculpture, portugal, artur bordalo, instagram,

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Bringing Winter to Life: The Shadowbox Art of Kelly Pousette

To see more of Kelly’s art, follow @kpousetteillustration on Instagram.

Winter has always been one of Kelly Pousette’s (@kpousetteillustration) favorite seasons. “There’s something really beautiful about a landscape with snow on it,” says the British Columbia-based artist. “There’s a lot of detail and intricacy you don’t see in the summertime.” Kelly has been drawing and painting since childhood, which evolved into her current shadowbox style. She cuts out her imagined characters and landscapes and stands them upright in a framed three-dimensional scene. “The layers create these amazing shadows; you can change the light and create a different scene without changing the pieces, or you replace one element and make an entirely different scene again,” she says.

The Vancouver native spends plenty of time outdoors to fuel her imagination. “Being outside really brings these scenes and animals to life for me,” says Kelly, whose spirit animal, a fox, makes frequent appearances in her shadowboxes — perhaps even in the ornament-sized version she’ll be creating for her Christmas tree this year.

photography, shadowbox, paperart, art, British Columbia, Kelly Pousette, instagram,

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Celebrating the Details with Franck Pellegrino

To discover more stories from the French-speaking community, follow @instagramfr.

(This interview was conducted in French.)

Franck Pellegrino (@franckpellegrino) is an illustrator and tattoo artist. “I need to experiment and renew myself every day. My style is very much influenced by typefaces and illustrations from the 1930s, which I adapt to my contemporary world,” says Franck, who is drawn to the art nouveau and art deco movements. Whether he’s in the street, in a gallery or working at the Bleu Noir tattoo parlor in Paris, Franck follows the same creative process, and his creations are known for their delicate lines, intricate contrasts and urban poetry. “I pay attention to details,” he says. “Because I work with fine lines, it lets me express a certain realism in my work.”

photography, tattoo, art, artist, art deco, art nouveau, franck pellegrino, paris, instagram,

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Living on the Road, Traveling the World with Benoit Paillé

For more stories from the French-speaking community, follow @instagramfr. For more from Benoit’s travels, follow @benoit_paille on Instagram.

(This interview was conducted in French.)

He doesn’t describe himself as a photographer, but Benoit Paillé (@benoit_paille) expresses himself through photography. “I’ve been living in a truck for three years,” says Benoit, who is originally from Quebec. “I completely transformed my life; I travel from country to country, and I just take pictures.” Right now, he’s in Guatemala where he’s taking colorful, surrealist pictures at night. “This pink flash is one way to transform reality without any post-editing,” he explains. “And this doesn’t keep me from keeping up my documentary-style work. I document my day-to-day wanderings, completely spontaneously. I don’t know why I take all these photos. It’s such a big part of my life; it’s my language, my revolt, what motivates me on the road. It’s my freedom.”

photography, travel, art, latinamerica, Quebec, Canada, Benoit Paillé, instagramfr, instagram,

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Exploring Jupiter’s Icy Moon with Artist Tom Sachs

To see more of Tom’s work, follow @tomsachs on Instagram.

In his New York studio, contemporary artist Tom Sachs (@tomsachs) is a master of bricolage, creating significant pieces from available objects. “It’s about the approach, which is do it yourself,” he says. “Don’t be afraid of the details, but embrace them deeply and go all the way.” Evidence of Tom’s attention to detail is present in his current exhibition “Space Program: Europa” at San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (@ybca). This third installment of Tom’s Space Program takes us to Europa, Jupiter’s icy moon; previous exhibitions have included missions to Earth’s moon and Mars. Space travel has been pervasive in his work since the mid-90s, but does Tom actually want to go? “No,” he says. “I would rather explore every corner of this Earth. After going to space, Earth is like a big, warm, wet kiss. The most hospitable place on Mars is a thousand times more dangerous than the bottom of our ocean and the top of Everest.”

photography, space, europa, yerba buena center for the arts, tom sachs, art, bricolage, jupiter, instagram,