Hixenbaugh Ancient Art is pleased to present the most recent color photographic images of Joseph Coscia Jr. in conjunction with our current exhibition of ancient art:
From 03/21/2019 to 04/27/2019 From 05/10/2018 to 05/31/2018 From 10/26/2017 to 11/18/2017 From 09/21/2017 to 10/14/2017 The GODDESS exhibition features sculpture of of the divine female form in antiquity. From 05/19/2017 to 06/30/2017 From 01/19/2017 to 02/25/2017 From 10/20/2016 to 12/24/2016 Through October 15 From 09/15/2016 to 10/15/2016 From 06/09/2016 to 07/30/2016 From 04/07/2016 to 05/28/2016 December through February 2016 From 12/10/2015 to 02/13/2016
From 10/29/2015 to 12/05/2015 On view in our Chelsea gallery from October 29 through December 5 From 09/17/2015 to 10/24/2015 On view exclusively at our Chelsea gallery from September 17 to October 24
On view from October 25th through December 7th.
(closed Thanksgiving weekend)
Artist’s Statement
In my work as a Metropolitan Museum of Art photographer, I’m surrounded by objects and images. My work every day is to capture their essences in how I photograph their forms and textures. Making my own objects to photograph is a natural evolution of this immersion.
I began making sculpture as props for photographs, using crumpled paper and beeswax. I’ve since been forming clay, plaster and wax into small objects. The earlier pieces mimicked classical sculpture, then natural findings such as bones and objects washed up on the shore. This current series of images is inspired by the forms and colors in dying coral reefs, where humankind has intruded on nature. The images, like our oceans, contain natural and unnatural, dead and living elements.
The artist's newest series “NEW COLOR IMAGES" is inspired by dying coral reefs, where humankind has intruded on nature. The images, like our oceans, contain natural and unnatural dead and living elements. Juxtaposed against ancient art of mimetic forms and colors, the exhibition intends to be a mediation on the effects of the passing of time, and humankind’s influence over objects both in art and nature.
Joseph Coscia Jr. developed an intimacy with the changing effects of natural light on stone surfaces over the years he has spent with the Metropolitan Museum of Art collections. He is currently Chief Photographer at the museum, where he has worked for over twenty-five years. His work photographing classical sculptures in various settings and seasons led to his fascination with the qualities of light on sculptures in varying light conditions. His personal photographs of museum pieces explore elements of the works outside the context of the museum setting.
Conversely, Joseph views and photographs everyday objects outside the museum in a similar context to how he photographs antiquities, exploring their textures, surfaces, and the play of light in varying conditions. His photographs of his own paper sculptures reflect this process. While in his studio experimenting with various lighting and surfaces, he noticed that cast-off copy paper he was manipulating had developed a likeness to gestural classical sculpture. He photographed these paper pieces in a way that captures the gestures and balance of classical stone works.
Joseph received his MFA from Hunter College in 1989 and his BFA from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania in 1982. His photographs have appeared in numerous publications and museum books, most notably 'Light on Stone' published in 2004, a photographic essay with introduction by Elizabeth Milleker.
Past Exhibitions
new book:
A Complete Guide and Catalog
RECENT ACQUISITIONS
REALM OF OSIRIS: Art of the Egyptian Mummy
Through November 18
GODDESS
through October 14
The photography of Joseph Coscia
CERAMIC
on view through February 25
Light on Stone:
the photography of Joseph Coscia
Paintings of John Woodrow Kelley
ART of WAR
Art of Ancient America
PAX ROMANA: Roman art exhibition
SYMPOSIUM: Wine and Revelry in Antiquity
From 04/16/2015 to 05/30/2015
On view exclusively at our Chelsea gallery from April 16th to May 30.
the face of antiquity
From 02/01/2015 to 04/11/2015
Our inaugural show in our newly opened Chelsea gallery, on view now through April 11th, explores the widely varied depictions of the human face in ancient art.
Neo-Assyrian Arms and Armor on Display
From 11/15/2011 to 12/31/2011
ANCIENT ARMS AND ARMOR
From 06/01/2008 to 06/30/2008
Our current exhibition includes a number of rare and unusual examples of ancient arms and armor including, Greek bronze helmets and horse armor, Roman legionary bricks, Celtic swords and spears, as well as a number of ancient projectile points.
FEMINA: Women of Antiquity
From 03/27/2008 to 04/30/2008
A special exhibition examining the iconography of women in ancient art