Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
Page 7
Page 8
Page 9
Page 10
Page 11
Page 12
Page 13
Page 14
Page 15
Page 16
Page 17
Page 18
Page 19
Page 20
Page 21
Page 22
Page 23
Page 24
Page 25
Page 26
Page 27
Page 28
Page 29
Page 30
Page 31
Page 32
Page 33
Page 34
Page 35
Page 36
Page 37
Page 38
Page 39
Page 40
Page 41
Page 42
Page 43
Page 44
Page 45
Page 46
Page 47
Page 48
Page 49
Page 50
Page 51
Page 52
Page 53
Page 54
Page 55
Page 56
Page 57
Page 58
Page 59
Page 60
Page 61
Page 62
Page 63
Page 64
Page 65
Page 66
Page 67
Page 68
Page 69
Page 70
Page 71
Page 72
Page 73
Page 74
Page 75
Page 76
Page 77
Page 78
Page 79
Page 80
Page 81
Page 82
Page 83
Page 84
Page 85
Page 86
Page 87
Page 88
Page 89
Page 90
Page 91
Page 92
Page 93
Page 94
Page 95
Page 96
Page 97
Page 98
Page 99
Page 100
Page 101
Page 102
Page 103
Page 104
Page 105
Page 106
Page 107
Page 108
Page 109
Page 110
Page 111
Page 112
Page 113
Page 114
Page 115
Page 116
Page 117
Page 118
Page 119
Page 120
Page 121
Page 122
Page 123
Page 124
Page 125
Page 126
Page 127
Page 128
Page 129
Page 130
Page 131
Page 132
Page 133
Page 134
Page 135
Page 136
Page 137
Page 138
12 body weight remains a constant source of reference that finds definition in multiple other abstract incarnations cast with lead copper aluminum and cement. La Famiglia a piece also completed in 1990 is composed of four lidless black rectangular boxes of different heights which are reminiscent of the open caskets presaging the carnage of a classic Western gun fight. Though inherently ominous by association based on conversations with Joe there may have been a more benign intent and in fact this work probably bears a closer kinship to the performance-driven body-derived fabric capsules of Franz Erhard Walther. Within the same general time period Joes approach to portraying the body his body takes on a more aggressive and emotionally invested nature. Menacing gatherings of tightly clustered triangular projectiles are canted on the floor like sharpened sticks at the bottom of a deadfall bear trap. In the case of a related work exhibited at 55 Ferris Street in 1992 a show he co-curated with a loose collective of artists My Weight 180lbs. in Copper and Aluminum was suspended from the ceiling like a baleful mobile of stalactites. Most people walking through the exhibition gave them a wide berth unlike Joe who claims to have slept directly underneath them during the nights he stayed in his studio. These works have a close aesthetic kindred spirit with the canon of minimalist sculptures like Donald Judd Jackie Winsor and early Richard Serra. There is a comparable sense of rhythm the use of repetition and geometric abstraction along with an acceptance of raw materials and a celebration of forged and manipulated metal. There is also a common bond amongst the audience who collectively feels the subliminal anxiety that comes from knowing that what has now cooled into solid form was once a fluid dangerous and potentially destructive force. It takes a distinct breed of artist to scratch the specific emotional itch that requires embracing the inherent danger of working with unpredictable and punishing materials. In 1996 using suspension as a sculptural tool a recurring theme in Joes work he signaled a shift from variations of abstract self-portraiture to a more public declaration of intolerance for hatred and racism. Prejudice is the playground of the disenfranchised and the ignorant. Its tribal irrational and pervasive whether encountered on a street corner or in misguided and disingenuous pseudo socio-anthropological opinions masquerading as fact. The Bell Curve is just such an opus a book published to infamy and self-serving acclaim in 1994. Joe had an immediate visceral response to