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
8 FIBERGLASS. GRANITE. FLOWERS. PLASTIC. MARBLE. CEMENT. BRASS. I will be presumptuous and add another key ingredient to those that I may have inadvertently omitted or will be added as time goes by. In every studio that Joe has let me wander I have found at least one black and white photograph of Sophia Loren captured in the blush of youthful beauty and provocative full-figured innocence. It doesnt take an art historian or for that matter a dime store psychologist to make a confident guess that the presence of her disarming smile and carnal unselfconsciousness holds the unspoken promise that sensuality and love are the most effective balm for all open wounds and that this vibrant and breathtaking Italian beauty makes for a very strong case as to why it pays to get through just another day. There has been the same pervasive sense of control and self-curated discipline to all of Zitos workspaces. Sculptures from the past and present nestle along with possible candidates for future exhibitions. Smaller artworks are respectfully presented on the walls while other pieces can be found suspended in the air most typically by three wires. Sculptures of a more recent series are placed in far less comfortable almost random positions on the floor often left at a precarious tilt as part of his fluid experiment towards resolution and completion. Small square cages of thin industrial grade rebar with spindly extensions imprison delicate hand blown glass elements that add to a fragile interplay between elements. Aesthetics aside there is a brooding angst in the air triggered by his multiple variables on the hourglass shape a form that figured heavily in his last show at Lennon Weinberg. Chalk white blood red and midnight black seemed to be the predominant palette of most works solid and stoic in the sculpture fugitive and ethereal in the many watercolors that swirl like gas fumes. Some are framed some hand pinned and other small groups lean against the wall making specific reference to existing three-dimensional work while others can only be experienced as an inextricable part of a larger ensemble. Often in this permutation heavily textured paper is used with an image created by heating the metal sculpture mold and then using it as a repetitive branding device searing the paper surface into gradations of burnt caramel in a superimposed conga line of geometric form. It is not a coincidence that the first line of his biography has always read Joseph Zito was born lives and works in Brooklyn. It feels like not only a statement of fact but also an active celebration of local terroir a birthright