EP 018: FERNANDO MASTRANGELO

Image Culture

Sculptor and designer Fernando Mastrangelo was raised in Monterrey, Mexico and received his MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University. Upon arriving in New York he landed a job working in the studio of the artist Matthew Barney, whose work would prove a lasting influence. An early sculptural work using sugar as a primary material was a major step for Fernando. His use of natural, granular materials cast in resin would become the foundation of his practice as both a sculptor and a furniture maker.

In the wake of this first piece Fernando began a series of ambitious works experimenting with material as well as exploring, often controversially, his status as as a Latino artist. Avarice, a scale replica of an Aztec calendar, was cast out of Mexican white corn. Another work, Felix, a figurative sculpture of a coca-farmer was cast out of Cocaine. Further works drew on materials such as gunpowder, concrete, human ash, salt, and sand, always selected for both their formal and metaphorical qualities.

In 2012, prompted by a large scale commission by Sean Parker, Fernando made a critical move away from figurative, narrative sculpture back towards abstraction. It was the beginning of an expansion of his practice into making functional design. Fernando’s work in furniture draws upon the processes he pioneered as a sculptor. His method of binding loose granular materials with an imperceptible layer of resin grant his objects a kind of surrealist quality. One can’t quite figure out how they remain solid. Recent work has focused on environmental issues and the expression of landscape through furniture. Additionally, Fernando’s non-profit In Good Company is dedicated to showing work by emerging designers and sculptors through an annual exhibition, the second installment of which is on view at his studio in East New York through mid October.

I’d like to thank Fernando and his entire team at the studio, Michelle Rosique, Anna Karlin, Brian Caverly, Loie Hollowell, as well as all the participating artists and designers of In Good Company. Special thanks to Hannah Martin, senior design editor at Architectural Digest, who co-curated the show with Fernando.

You can see my portrait of Fernando, shot with a body of work made in collaboration with Anna Karlin, at www.williamjesslaird.com/imageculture. You can also find it on Instagram @william.jess.laird or @image.culture

To see more of Fernando’s work head over to www.fernandomastrangelo.com or find him on Instagram @iamfm

You can also see images of all the works in “In Good Company 2018” at www.fernandomastrangelo.com/collections/in-good-company

Thanks for listening!