May 03 - June 15, 2002

Observatory

Todd Noe ‘s Observatory at Gallery Joe

Philadelphia – Gallery Joe is pleased to announce the opening of an exhibition of new sculpture and drawings by Todd Noe. Observatory opens in the Front Gallery on First Friday, May 3 and runs through June 15, 2002.

This is Noe’s third solo show at Gallery Joe. He is a skilled craftsman who cuts, shapes, and assembles his sculpture from a variety of metals including bronze, copper, and nickel. In his last show at the gallery Noe showed free standing and small sculptures on shelves. The current show features works in this vein but differs in the mode of presentation. Noe’s new work combines elements of installation with his familiar wall mounted format. An array of objects occupies a 10’ wide by 4’ high sweep of wall in the gallery. The viewer is encouraged to traverse the work viewing individual objects through a movable magnifying lens. Noe’s objects, although adhering to nautical themes, are broadly suggestive. There are three wall-mounted works in the show as well as a number of drawings interspersed with the sculpture giving insight into the artist’s process.

Noe has been awarded numerous public projects including a Percent for the Arts commission for the Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped in Baltimore and a giant key in the lobby of the Franklin Institute. He is a participant in the Fairmount Park Art Association’s public art initiative: New – Land – Marks: public art, community, and the meaning of place. Noe is a 1996 Pew Fellowship winner. He holds an MFA in sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design and a BFA in metal craft from Philadelphia College of Art.

Noe’s work was recently seen in New-Land Marks: Fairmount Park Art Association at the Museum of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA. Other venues include the Delaware Art Museum’s Biennial and a traveling show, Art of a Different Caliber. In New York his work has appeared at the Peter Joseph Gallery and the American Craft Museum.

Observatory opens May 3 and continues through June 15, 2002. The artist will be present at an opening reception on First Friday, May 3 from 6:30 – 8:30 P.M. Regular gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday 12 – 5:30, other days by appointment. For additional information contact Becky Kerlin, 215.592.7752, FAX 215.238.6923. www.galleryjoe.com