If you've indulged in one of those paint-and-wine classes with your #squad, you probably have a one-of-a-kind souvenir from that particular girls night out. Naturally, Blake Lively sees your canvas and tempera paint and ups the ante with her foray into the art world. She paid a visit to her favorite artist, Ashley Longshore, who just so happens to be one of the biggest names shaking up the art world.
Lively shared a snapshot from Longshore's studio showing off a canvas featuring a bouquet of glittery blooms. In the background, there's even more art, including a sparkling mandala and a larger-than-life diamond (and a Lacroix — stars and artists are normal folk). "Never too old to bedazzle," Lively captioned the photo.
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Longshore shared Lively's image and added, "Thank you for loving the artists, the poets, the chefs and the musicians... the wild ones who dare to be different... your enthusiam fuels the creative fire.... artists together can make quite a GLOW in a world that can feel a little dark and cold right now.... find an artist you love and be friends with them...make art."
It's not just the glitter and Hollywood BFFs that set Longshore apart from her artsy peers. She's bucking the entire art system by forgoing galleries entirely. Instead, she's using Instagram as a virtual exhibition, posting works and selling them straight from her feed. That way, she's keeping all the cash for her work, which can go for $5,000 to $50,000, and not answering to anyone but herself.
By embracing social media, Longshore can focus all the attention on her work — and play with Insta as an inspiration board. Many of her pieces sell minutes after they hit the photo-sharing platform and Longshore has a long list of fans, which include Lively's husband Ryan Reynolds, jeweler Lorraine Schwartz, Eli Manning, Salma Hayek, and Penelope Cruz.
It's not just the glitter and bling that Longshore's fans love. It's the subject matter, too. When she's not dabbling in diamonds, she's creating portraits of pop-culture icons and musicians, mashing up religious imagery with emoji, and adding rhinestones to just about everything. She not only has the attention of the art world, but Longshore has also teamed up with big name beauty and fashion labels, too, including Clé de Peau Beauté, Chloé, and more.
What's next? A line of rugs that replicate her singular style. We're sure they'll make an appearance on Lively's feed soon enough. We can't think of a better way to showcase art than with a few cute kids crawling on it.
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