cecil balmond

cecil balmond is a structural engineer. he has pushed some of the world's most amazing architects and artists (rem koolhaas, toyo ito, anish kapoor, etc) to create projects nobody would have thought possible. they're gorgeous. one of my favorite things about balmond's projects is how giant pieces of material are made to look so light and friendly while still being completely perplexing structures. his projects look physically impossible. also, he knew fela kuti!
read more about him here, here and here.

david altmejd

i <3 david altmejd's work. i <3 his references to modernist design, architecture, subversion of art history tropes (sol lewitt, joseph beuys, dan flavin, bruce nauman), his references to '80s opulence, a dario argento wet dream.
i also love that he can create environments, as opposed to just installations. his 'installations' are immersive, a world apart. they're cinematic because cinema could easily happen in them. they beg for narrative and a sense of confused linear time.