JOSEPH SLUSKY PAINTED PAPER SCULPTURES Joseph Slusky5.5 x 8.5 PB • 46 Pgs • $20.00 • ISBN 978-1-60052-119-5
I have always maintained a drawing practice as well as making sculptures. They are separate and complementary endeavors, but the drawings were never intended as possible sculptures. I see this series of “Menu” drawings somewhat differently. In December 2014, I had neck surgery and was on a physical therapy regimen that put restrictions on weight lifting, bending and twisting. During this period I took a break from doing welded metal sculpture. I focused instead on doing a series of drawings on restaurant menus. As I was working on these drawings, I realized the process was akin to making a sculpture in steel. In these drawings traces of the initial maze of general lines remain and become part of the final drawing as well as the erasures and alterations made by using China markers. The subtractive process employed in resolving a welded metal sculpture is achieved through use of an oxygen – a acetylene cutting torch for removing or altering parts of the work. After the “Menu” drawings were “sculpturally” resolved, I then used felt tip pens to give color to the shapes and forms. With the metal sculptures, a lengthy process of hand painting occurs after the grinding and application of primer.
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