Jean Baptiste

Showing the evolution of simple, strong natural leaf-forms, and man-made geometric patterns, these plates were drawn in 1896 by Jean Baptiste to explore and explain symmetries and repetitions. With their pared-down simplicity and muted palettes they are strangely undated, and still a fascinating source of inspiration.

John Lehr

A strange lexicon of crumpled, discarded and damaged American advertising billboards and slipped suburban typefaces are what fascinates photographer John Lehr. He crafts compelling, poetic images from the mistakes and the unloved - the peeling adhesive, the slipped letter and the abandoned building or unwashed car are all recognised as objects of beauty in themselves through his lens. His shrewd eye and interesting compositions make the viewer reappraise objects and debris they've probably walked past without noticing on a daily basis. With the isolated details of junk food billboards there's a nod to the Pop iconography of artists like James Rosenquist, but with his understanding of colour, Lehr's work is more like a strange and compelling collision of photographic legend William Eggleston's irreverence, and Italian artist Mimmo Rotella's carefully salvaged ripped vintage posters.

Neon Rose, 2010

Nuggets, 2008

Billboard Detail, Norfolk, CT, 2005

Ripped Billboard, Maryland, 2006

Neptune, NJ, 2007

Untitled, 2005

2467, 2010

Wipe, 2010

Burger King, Connecticut, 2005

Bank, 2010

Gibberish, 2010

Crumpled Cheeseburger Sign, 2008

All images © John Lehr

Michael Leavitt

Seattle-based artist Michael Leavitt has created this fairly brilliant series of figurines of titans of the art world, 'The Art Army Royalty'. Leavitt makes the figures from scratch, customising each one so it not only looks like the artist in question, but reflects some of their best-known work. It was only a matter of time before artists themselves became objects of art available for purchase, but you can't help liking what Leavitt has created, since these aren't grandiose bronze busts but posable polymer figures. Interesting to know what the artists themselves think of their caricatures.....

David Hockney

Lucien Freud

Takashi Murakami

Jasper Johns

Gerhard Richter

Cy Twombly

Damien Hirst

Kara Walker

James Turrell

Ellsworth Kelly

Chuck Close

Claes Oldenburg

Cindy Sherman

Jeff Koons

Frank Stella

Ed Ruscha

Barbara Kruger

Tom Sachs

Ai Wei Wei

All images © Michael Leavitt, courtesy of Jonathan LeVine Gallery

Roe Ethridge part 2

Roe Ethridge is in the enviable position right now of being feted by the art world for his increasingly conceptual photographic explorations, and shooting distinctive fashion work for some of the more prestigious periodicals. FOV first took a look at Ethridge's work in October 2009, and since then he seems to have converted more and more people to his slightly slanted vision. Its particularly interesting to see how his recent fashion work has evolved, maintaining a weirdness and tension through considered casting - the models are often beautiful but unconventional - and unexpected poses and props. Magazines like Another, Dazed & Confused and Muse are a natural home for this carefully crafted marriage of style, irony and luxury. Below are some of our favourites from recent shoots (and yes, the b&w image is supposed to be on its side).

Its not for everyone - the faux naiveté of some of his images can grate, and the New Yorker's influential photo critic Vince Aletti remains unconvinced - but in these increasingly trying times, Ethridge's uneasy but compelling images, and his almost neo-Conceptual approach, seem to be the apotheosis of cool.

All images © Roe Ethridge