The first 25 years of John Brady’s contribution to the art world was in the capacity of a Graphic Designer. In the early days of computers, as an Apple/Mac technology enthusiast, John, designed anything creative that came his way: marketing pieces for local businesses, corporate identity branding, logo designs– he was even commissioned to design the emblem for Bill Gates’ commemoration of Microsoft’s 10-year anniversary in Ireland. A remarkable achievement in itself, however his crowning glory and his more ever-lasting legacy takes place in the next 25 years of his life. As an artist! And not only that, but an educator of art, as his website reveals.

For anyone lacking the imagination to know what kind of art to buy, or where to hang it once you’ve bought it, Dublin-born artist John Brady has created a website that might be entitled, ‘ How to Become an Art Connoisseur.’ The site shows photographs of his art displayed in every room in his villa. Using every available inch of wall space, paintings are hung in every niche, every hallway, every nook and cranny. His entire residence has become a showcase for his art. As if that weren’t enough, John includes on his website, a step-by-step video showing how he paints one of his favorite subjects, a field of poppies. Starting with a white canvas, and using nothing but palette knives, John applies paint directly from the tubes. Wielding his knives like a slight of hand magician, with a few deft strokes a sky emerges, a few more dabs of color and a field of poppy plants appear. Then, the coup de grace as John twirls in the barest essentials of crimson red poppy leaves petal by petal. Never one to overwork his canvasses, what details John omits from his poppy fields landscape, the viewer’s imagination fills in. John Brady’s works are so predominant and energizing that instead of people buying them as paintings to match their decor – the paintings are the decor! And rooms are decorated and centered around the artwork. In fact, some paintings are dynamic enough to set the theme for an entire residence. Many of his works appear to divide the canvas diagonally one section in contrasting opposition to the other. Ethereally, his paintings have the essence of the yin and the yang, the spiritual versus the material. Symbolically, one section plays against the other as if they were the tectonic plates of the earth’s crust advancing towards each other, volatile with the potential of massive amounts of energy. It is this maneuver of spatial energies that give his art the power.

Vibrant landscapes, vivid florals, brilliant abstract studies of nature– all with such dynamic movement, they’re about to explode off the canvas. ” When I finish a piece,” says John, ” I know that it will brighten the most mundane wall.” He is a deeply spiritual being and seeks to enlighten people with his art. As he explains, ” I feel dramatic colour can lift your senses and energize your mind, and stimulating the senses is what I try to achieve.”

In the true spirit of the disciplined Italian masters Caravaggio, Raphael, Michelangelo and daVinci; and the freedom of expression of the Impressionists Monet, Constable and Van Gogh– who were all “teachers” of this fine student– very few artists have the ability to excite the senses to this extent with just the power of the paint and brush. John Brady is one of them.

You can visit Johns website at http://www.johnbradyart.com

Whenever a person needs to improve the look of their house, it is always advised to have a proper garden design. The landscaping garden ideas may include any form of flowers and plants that can be grown in a systematic and maintained order. This is because, if a garden is left unattended, weeds may grow and it will ruin the garden’s look. Hence garden design is very useful to control how the plants will grow in our backyards. The design is also the easiest way for a gardener or a landowner to help the plants grow the way he wants.

But the processes of garden design and landscaping are not as easy as they sound. It’s not a plant it and forget it type of deal. It involves a lot of hard work and dedication to maintain it. So the main things for both proper garden design and landscaping are planning. The proper space for the garden has to be decided beforehand, and sorted accordingly so there won’t be a huge mess while you’re trying to plant. The shape and size also matters in both the garden design and landscaping. If you have a lot of free open space, you can always plant some green grass to cover a major portion of the space with lawn. This can also be done by planting some small plants and trees and then spreading the lawn around them. This adds to the overall beauty of the garden.

Garden design and landscaping are nothing without proper maintenance. Weeds tend to grow every now and then. So most of the time you’re going to need to use a lawn mower. But keep in mind this needs to be planned also. This is because if proper space is not left between every plant and group of flowers, the lawn mower may not be able to reach those areas, thus getting in the way and causing you extra work. So it’s always a good idea to design the landscaping based on the instruments you use.

Planning softscape and hardscape is also an essential part of fulfilling all of your landscaping ideas for gardens. Hardscape usually means constructing solid bodies to facilitate the ease of growth and maintenance of the garden. This usually includes solid concrete paths for the flow of water, which is vital to the plants growth. Other structures such as stone walls and circular stones around the plants also fall under this category. Lighting for decorations and constructions of permanent solid structures are some of the most widely used hardscape methods. Softscape on the other hand involves the idea of planting lawn and green grass within a certain area.

Since a garden can add quite a bit to the scenic beauty of your house, it’s important that you pay attention to the type of plants you use – depending on the color of the house, the surrounding environment and much more. Careful precautions must also be taken on weed growth and maintaining the height of the plants. Don’t let your plants overgrow, and you should have beautiful, well-groomed garden.

While many believe that a landscaper is nothing more than someone who comes in and mows, trims and weed eats the grass, then neatly blows everything away so no one will ever know it was there, is misinformed. People who do nothing but this are people who mow, trim and weed eat your lawn and blow the remains away.

A landscaper is someone who works with the lay of the land and the flowers of your choice to bring about a desired affect. While there is a good deal of “yard work” that is done within the realm of landscaping, there is also a great deal of gardening and hardscaping that is done as well.

The gardening part can be anything from planting flowers, trees and shrubs to pruning and replacing dead or no longer wanted plants. It can also encompass sprinkler and other types of watering systems, designing gardens out in the yard or container gardens on your patios and decks. All of these things will need to flow into an overall landscape design and can be addressed and needed and/or wanted.

People forget that your landscape might also include arbors and pergolas to driveways, irrigation issues, laying of new patios, building onto your home in the form of a deck or sunroom and numerous other ideas that can be incorporated into your overall outdoor design. These hardscape items encompass a wonderful part of you home and outdoor decor.

So the next time you think about doing something different with your yard from putting in water features such as a pond or fountain to filling in a swimming pool and turning it into an organic garden; building retaining walls to keep your yard in or another yard out to weeding and making sure your plants are healthy and happy, thank of your local landscaping company. You may be surprised at what they can do and do well!