Joe Norman has just graced us with a new series of sculptural artwork for our show (opening this Friday) entitled “Taking Shape.”

It is a collaborative show with Ron Russon, and the two artists created two pieces that feature both of their work in one: sculpture and painting. Look for them on our website, soon, and please stop by the gallery this week to see the show in its entirety.

In the new body of work by Joe Norman, we have two stainless steel sculptures that are masks, both beautifully reflective and hand-worked in all the right places. These two pieces were inspired by a mask-making project that Norman headed up, for veterans of war. The project was conducted by a university in Colorado, and Norman was hired to lead the warriors in creating masks as an art therapy. As the pieces were constructed, Norman realized that the mask artworks they were making were actually reflections of themselves — their appearances but also their experiences.

Taking this idea further, Norman wanted to create a series of masks that are actually reflective. As you gaze into these two pieces, “Stainless Mask I” and “Stainless Mask II” you actually see your own reflection, albeit warped and changed.

Are we wearing masks of our own reflection? Or are our masks the reflections of others and what they see in us? Interesting questions that only serve to make this new body of work more intriguing. See the masks in person at Gallery MAR, or visit Joe Norman’s artist page at https://blog.gallerymar.com/artists/joe-norman/.

Tags: art masks, Joe Norman, Ron Russon
Posted in Gallery Insights