We recently acquired a few of Serena Mitnik-Miller’s wooden block sculptures (pictured above and below) at the gallery where I work and they’ve been a huge visual inspiration to me over the past month. Each one is truly a three-dimensional painting, grounded in the inherent warmth of the reclaimed wood she uses as her canvas, which peeks through the flags of her earthy color palette. They are unique and hand-painted and, at $200 for the small blocks and $300 for the larger ones, make for a reasonably affordable investment in original art. They are also just downright exquisite objects that beckon people to pick them up and spend time inspecting each side.
 
According to her artist statement, the images represent “a complex system of patterning that interconnects color and shapes as if to create a new symbiotic relationship and language reminiscent of the nautical alphabet.” Serena, an avid surfer, definitely knows a thing or two about the sea.

She is also co-owner, with her husband Mason St. Peter, of the super well curated General Store in San Francisco’s Outer Sunset district. They just last week opened their online outpost which, true to its name, is stocked with an immense variety of desirable objects from the blocks to beaded hair clips to hand crafted toy tops from Japan to natural fiber dusters, making it a must-stop for online holiday shopping.
 
 
[Images from General Store]

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