statement

My work has a very specific aesthetic. Spare, silent, lonely. When you look at one of my drawings I want the outside world to close in, creating a very small quiet space around you and the drawing.

I aim for a kind of effortlessness, like the drawing has been blown onto the paper in one restrained breath. There needs to be some evidence of process; a few sketchy lines carefully left in to show that the drawing has progressed from non-existence to existence. The drawings are highly-finished so the mind can relax and concentrate on what is there.

One of the reasons I work in silverpoint is because the technique is methodical. A silverpoint drawing develops gradually, from light to dark, and slowly, with a lot of time for observation and consideration. Another reason is that silverpoint is a medieval medium, it has an air of antiquity, of alchemy, of craftsmanship. Although the drawings appear similar to pencil drawings, the fact that silver tarnishes means the drawing is constantly evolving, becoming softer, darker, and warmer in tone over the years as it ages.

Each object is drawn from life, from objects that sit right in front of me, and occupy my total focus. That much attention activates the object, making it take on a life of its own. The objects I choose to draw are small, ordinary things, that either have a complex structure, or a compelling surface quality, or react to light in a way that is extraordinary. While at first the choice is visual, after further consideration the subjects must have a thematic element that transforms the drawing from a simple still-life to more of an object portrait. It is developing these themes across a series of works that occupies my artistic intention.

bio

born: 1968, Williamsport, Pennsylvania

education

Syracuse University, MFA, 1993
Temple University Tyler School of Art, BFA, 1990

selected awards/honors

William D. Davis Award in Drawing, Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts, 2006
Emerson Foundation Grant, Hamilton College, 2000

selected publications

Banjie Getsinger Nicholas; Silver Linings, pp. 34-35, 2012
Katherine Rushworth; Artist Tom Mazzullo Proves Less is More, Syracuse Post Standard, 7/15/2007
Everson Museum of Art; Tom Mazzullo Drawings, 2007
Savannah Morning News; Artists Mine Silverpoint, 7/6/2006

selected solo or two-person exhibits

The New Art Gallery SUNY Oneonta: Supernatural, Oneonta, NY, 2008
Everson Museum of Art: Tom Mazzullo Drawings, Syracuse, NY 2007
Kirkland Art Center: Fred Bauer/Thomas Mazzullo, Clinton, NY 2005

selected group shows

Gildar Gallery: Inaugural Exhibition Vol. 2, Denver, CO, 2012
Clement Gallery: Luminous Metal: Contemporary Drawings in Metalpoint, Troy, NY 2011
Adamson-Duvannes Gallery: The Little Picture Show: 200 Years of 'Gems' and 'Sparkles', Los Angeles, CA, 2010-2011
Evansville Museum of History and Art: The Luster of Silver, Evansville, IN, 2009