New Jersey Sculptor, Ex-Carpenter, Finds Inspiration In Drywall

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — New Jersey native Ryan Roa’s relationship to his art is complicated. But it’s also surprisingly simple. That’s because Roa – a former carpenter - chooses to work with some unique materials that include common hardware and construction supplies such as tempered glass, drywall, plexiglass, steel mesh and tape.

Roa’s work, which consists primarily of floor and wall sculptures, will be on display at The Walsh Gallery at Seton Hall University in South Orange from Monday, Oct. 16 to Friday, Dec. 8. There will be an opening reception on Thursday, Oct. 19 from 5 to 9 p.m.

The sculptures on view in this show were conceived during Roa’s recent residency at the University of Texas, Dallas – Central Trak. It will be the first time the work will be presented publicly as a whole, according to a university news release.

“[Roa] favors mundane, prefabricated items over traditional, time honored media such as bronze, steel or marble,” said Jeanne Brasile, curator of the exhibition, praising his work. “Using prescribed formulas - often based on ratios or offsets — he stacks, incises, bends, layers, folds or stretches matter to create sculptures that can be understood as the residue of the artist’s physical gestures as form.”

For more information, click here. Seton Hall University is located at 400 S. Orange Avenue, South Orange. The Walsh Gallery is open 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday.

Check out video footage from some of Roa’s previous exhibits below. Don’t forget to visit the Patch South Orange Facebook page here.

Photo courtesy of Seton Hall University