Thin Walls: Birthday | Acrylic, Wood Panel | 4' x 6' | 2011
Thin Walls: They Stopped | Acrylic, Wood Panel | 8' x 14' | 2012
Artist Statement: One morning while brushing my teeth, I heard other teeth brushing sounds. It hit me; my neighbor and I were staring at the same spot on the wall due to apartment plumbing. This started an investigation and response through painting, drawing, and film to sounds that thin walls are unable to contain. In the middle of this process I was affected by a neighbor’s dramatic removal from their apartment, which was followed by silence. Sounds like that night are limited, can be amusing, often are an annoyance, sometimes are alarming, but they represent human qualities that have become valuable to me.
Josh Ostraff currently teaches as a visiting professor of art at the Community College of Rhode Island. He received a BFA in painting and drawing at Brigham Young University and completed an MFA at the University of Minnesota. He has lived and studied art in Tonga, New Zealand, and in Europe. Josh practices painting, drawing, and filmmaking and has exhibited his work internationally and nationally. Recently his work was included in the Manifest Galleries INPA 3 in Cincinnati, Ohio and Fresh Paint Magazine, Issue III.