Tomorrow night I will be giving a talk at the Metuchen ARTS Council’s Artist gathering. I’m will share about my experiences showing at the 14C Art Fair.

The weekend went by fast. It was busy. It was intense. So what was it like....

I’m still thinking about that. It ended. We packed up and drove home. And how did I feel? Actually: quite amazing. So my experience was rife with expectations as probably was most people’s. There were people I wanted to meet. Art I wanted to see. Conversations I wanted to have. Sales I wanted to make. And of course, my work I wanted to have seen. I wanted to feel as an artist amongst my peers.

I set out to meet the participants and see the work. Everyone was nervous and clearly everyone had their own set of expectations and fears. I wanted to connect with the artists and the gallerists. I knew it would be three days of small talk and sales talk. I wanted to see if we could just get a piece of something more meaningful to ground us in our community. Turns out it was better than I hoped. I met amazing people and we had amazing conversations. We talked about our concerns and then talked about the work. Really talked about the work. I was having studio visits and everyone needed to dig into their work as a break from the parade of lookers. It was fantastic. I’m hoping that some of these connections will build. I think they will...
So what else? Sales. This was rough. Most of us sold a little. Sales were not the big hit this time. Showing with a new group of people. Yeah this was fabulous! Seeing the different work sing together and the room just flow. Amazing.. There were some people who kicked tires a bit harder and maybe they will circle back for a buy. There were some gallery people who said they were very interested. We will see...

As it stands, a day later, I feel for once, planted in my arts community in New Jersey. This is right now the greatest value of the fair. It feels momentous.

https://reg125.imperisoft.com/ContemporaryArt/Search/Registration.aspx This is going to be a great time. Check the CCA website or contact me for more info!

All the weeks of building and planning really paid off! Install was a breeze. I think I got just what I was after with the piece. I knew it would be different indoors, especially in such a charged and intimate space. Now to sit with the uncomfortableness of having the piece reveal itself. This morning when I looked at this pic and saw the space and dissolving, disintegrating figure next to me, I understand how the shower figure got consumed literally as I thought about the fires raging around the planet. I still love the figure “ burning” in front of the shower head. Thank you to all who helped put this together.

Joseph Castronova, Artist. B.F.A., M.F.A., School of Visual Arts, School of Museum of Fine Arts, Art Students League.
Collections include: JP Morgan Chase, Staten Island Institute for Arts and Sciences, SVA. Weissglass Purchase Prize recipient.
Solo Exhibitions: M Galleries, Washington, NJ; Catherine Street Gallery, Staten Island, NY.
Group exhibitions include: Visual Arts Gallery, NY, NY; Revolution Gallery, NY, NY; Art Network, SI, NY; Catherine Street Gallery, SI, NY; Central Gallery, London; Skulski Art Gallery, Clark, NJ; Watchung Arts Center, NJ.; M Galleries, Washington, NJ; Yendor Productions, Plainfield, NJ; Barron Art Center, Woodbridge, NJ.; Artist Framer, Cranford, NJ; Earth Studios, Metuchen, NJ.; Windows of Understanding, Highland Park, NJ.; Westerhoff Gallery, Metuchen NJ.; Above Art Gallery, New Brunswick, NJ.
Commissions include: TelTech, S. Amboy, NJ., RoboKiller, Metuchen Downtown Alliance