Despite the somewhat gloomy weather on November 16, an appreciative crowd of more than 100 people (participants in the Art around the Park art walk) met artist Riccardo Berlingeri as the Arts Council of the Morris Area celebrated his newly completed sculpture, Ode to a Dear Old Friend, located in the first floor lobby of the LEED-certified “green” building at 14 Maple Ave., Morristown. The large sculpture is constructed entirely of recycled materials; namely, old issues of the NY Times and glue. As Berlingeri explains, Ode to a Dear Old Friend is, like most of my sculptures, made from recycled newspapers and it is a tribute to good journalism that for approximately the past three hundred years has defined our perception of the world and has also contributed to shaping our environmental awareness and concern….My sculptures celebrate the printed paper’s authenticity with no use of paint or chemical preservatives….”
Artist Riccardo Berlingeri adding layers to Ode to a Dear Old Friend; Berlingeri’s Brainstorm
“With its themes relating to the Earth and to the decline of the written word, and its medium of recycled materials, this remarkable piece is the perfect public artwork for the lobby of one of Morristown’s first ‘green’ buildings,“ says Anne Aronovitch, Executive Director of the Arts Council of the Morris Area.
Another of Berlingeri’s newspaper sculptures, Brainstorm, is among the 33 works by 29 NJ artists featured in its current juried exhibition, Whimsy, at the Gallery at 14 Maple, located on the 3rd floor of the same building. The Arts Council’s Gallery at 14 Maple participated in the November 16th Art Around the Park art walk – along with the Simon Gallery (gallery on Bank Street, Morristown and at the eclectic grill, Morristown Hyatt) and Gallery Egan (gallery on Community Place, Morristown).