Day 6/7 – Debi meets with David Zelikovsky, of Gallery CATM in Chelsea – Nov. 22, 2011 A Daily Journal of New York

Monday, November 22, 2011, Day 6 in New York City

We both felt the end of our trip getting closer so we made a list of the last things we wanted to do:

• By Lazar’s lady a present
• Go to the Sculpture Store
• Go to the Leslie-Lohaman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art  (met  Jerry Kajpust, Director at the GLAAD event)
• Go to CATM gallery (was recommended by  Stephan R. Rabimov whom I met at GLAAD)

The day started off  with a little rain, but I took DayQuil, and out we went and took the subway to mid-town.  Unfortunately while walking towards the sports store (for Lazar’s girldfriend) I saw Marshalls – a department store that sells designer clothes and brand names at a fraction of the price.   I made Lazar  wait, while I entered into a frenzy of buying and after an hour and a half, I bought two pairs of shoes, 5 shirts, 1 sweater, 1 pare of pants!  luckily they had a service for only 15$ where they deliver it to your home!

After this we continued to the sports store, and then to Soho and went to visit   Jerry Kajpust of the Leslie-Lohaman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art .  He didn’t remember me from the GLAAD evening , but he was very friendly just the same, and took us around, and added us to his mailing list and took a copy of my catalog.

After a short visit at The Compleat Sculptor, Inc., and some fortifying soup, we took the subway to Chelsea and found the CATM Chelsea Gallery . Stephen, whom I met at the GLAAD OutAuction, suggested we go there, as the owner David, was very friendly and open minded.  We walked in dripping with water from the rain.  After drying out, we started to look at the art.

David Zelikovsky explained to us about the artist, Yasuto Sasada (only 24 years old!) and his art,

“Sasada’s weapon of choice is a 0.3mm pen – he has an arsenal of them, each slightly more used than the next, translating to numerous shades of black and gray. You’ll find images below of Sasada’s work, but to appreciate the acuity of his penmanship, you have to see these drawings in person. Each canvas is obsessively detailed – so elaborate that the average piece takes one month to complete; that’s even more impressive considering Sasada is a workhorse, clocking 16 hours of drawing on a normal day.
Many of Sasada’s pieces consist of either Japanese mythological creatures or members of the animal kingdom. The inner-working of each figure is where the artist incorporates a complex maze of tubing, pipes, wires, fans and a slew of other objects found at manufacturing plants. Viewing the entirety of each work, one can see the artist’s heritage and principles take shape. There is a sense of disappointment in human selfishness and ignorance, follies that create the hideous byproduct of environmental seppuku. However, Sassada is not interested in promoting a bucolic paradise; disappointment splinters against an admiration for his hometown’s industrial past and ancestral accomplishments.”

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I definitely appreciated the art more after hearing about the artist and the concept behind his pictures. I then introduced myself and Lazar, and told David that we came her upon recomondation from Stephen, and that I am an artist.

He graciously invited me to meet with him, saying that he has an open door policy, and asked if I would like to set up an appointment.  I asked if it was possible in the next two days, as I was leaving the country, or… possibly …. now.

I couldn’t believe it when he pulled out a chair for me and invited me to sit down!

For the next two hours we sat and he “drilled” me with penetrating questions regarding me as an artist and my art.  He gently pointed out points of weakness that I have to work on, both in my art and my presentation. His comments were extremely perceptive, and as soon as he said them, I felt the truth in them.  It was an exhilarating, insightful, thought provoking conversation, that left me dazed as I walked out of the Gallery. Luckily Lazar had taken some notes, so I could recall all the vast subjects we spoke about.  He invited me to stay in touch with him.

I felt that this was the perfect closure to my week of art/self research that I had embarked upon!

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Back to Kenny’s where we all went out to a family Italian dinner in the neighborhood.

After a good hot shower, a cuddle with Kobi (the dog)  and my dose of NightQuill,  I again passed out on my favorite couch!

END OF DAY 6

Tomorrow: Matzo Ball Soup, Milk Duds, and a night in the Village of Jazz and Blues!