Leonardo Drew "Cycles", The Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum

Leonardo Drew
Cycles,
From the Collection of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation
The Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum
Leonardo Drew’s prints, at once powerfully large yet fragile, test the versatility of the medium, transforming cotton paper pulp and pigment into what suggests densely populated cities, a forest, or an urban wasteland. They sometimes look like maps of geographical landscapes viewed from above, while others are reminiscent of the night sky and distant galaxies. Evocative of fire, soil, sky, and water, there are strong perceptions in both microcosmic and macrocosmic scales.
Organic forms within the composition undulate with various textures and luminosities, pushing the boundaries of its materiality. Much like his sculptural installations in wood, Drew starts with raw material, transforming and reconstructing its essence until it resembles debris. Through this process, the artist articulates diverse histories of chaos and cycles of birth and death.