Judith Ann Moriarty
Gallery Night Preview

Close Encounters at Safi Studio

By - Jan 13th, 2011 04:00 am

On the inaugural Gallery Night of 2011 Safi Studios (in the LL of the Marshall Building) debuts Swingline 1: a single sculpture; a singular magic moment in time, right out of Close Encounters. It’s almost of the “third kind,” but not quite.

By day, Milwaukee native Sheila Jones is the Imaging Coordinator for Miller Coors, and for 3 ½ years has labored preparing their documents. Part of the prep is removing staples, or so says this lady. As the pile of staples grew over two years, she decided to save them in a box. The pile grew; the size of the boxes grew too. And thus was birthed her sculpture.

So what is a mountain of staples doing in swell little Safi Studio? Jones has no education in art and her sculpture is pure happenstance. Or is it pure luck? One of the owners of Safi, artist Tom Kovacich, also works at Miller Coors.

“I’d guess there are approximately 500,000 staples in Swingline 1,” Sheila says. “Once you pull them out of the documents, they still have hooks and curves, and so they hold each other together.”

Rather beautifully, I must say. When asked if she plans to expand her artistic output, say by moving on to play with paper clips and rubber bands, she says she’s decided to stick with staples.

Swingline 1 opens Winter Gallery Night, Jan. 21, at Safi Studios, located in suite LL8 of the Marshal Building. For more information and gallery hours, click here.

Categories: Art, Arts & Culture

0 thoughts on “Gallery Night Preview: Close Encounters at Safi Studio”

  1. Anonymous says:

    lovely is, as lovely does!
    Thanks Judith!

  2. Anonymous says:

    how cool! I’ll have to sneak over to take a peak this weekend!

  3. Anonymous says:

    I have a pile of staples in my sink facing the window. it looks like a mountain so it is higher than you Frank Lloyd Wright pile.
    I will come and see your work.. but I do have a magnet in my pocket.

  4. Anonymous says:

    Thanks all, besides S. Jones staple work at Safi, please also check out Dianne Soffa’s encaustics at Dean Jensen’s this weekend, and Jane Gates work too, at Safi. Good stuff!

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