joseph a. w. quintela - portfolio
TRANSCRIPT
Joseph A. W. Quintela
Art + Design (view online)
219 East 69th Street; #9H
New York, NY 10021
646-652-9116
B O O K D E S I G N
Anatomy of a Design: the sum of uncountable things by denver butson
1. The individual poems in Denver Butson’s manuscript were written in blocks of free verse lending
themselves to a justified presentation in narrow columns with plenty of space between the lines that
allowed the text its full grandeur on the page and encourages a more careful reading. Butson and I
discussed—then implemented—a grayer than normal font color to soften the impact of these blocks
of text and further slow the reader’s movement through the poetry.
2. With negative space an integral aspect in the aesthetics of traditional poetry, I proposed a landscape
book format that allowed for a large swath of white page offsetting the text. Denver and I agreed that
this also invited the reader to further engage with the text by providing a generous space for
marginalia. We later saw this play out according to our expectations when a number of readers
showed Denver their personal copies filled with notes on the poems.
3. While Denver’s original manuscript began each individual poem on a new page, I felt that the
recurrent themes, images, and devices in the collection lent to a possible reading of the text as a
single, long-form poem. Denver and I went back and forth on this aspect of the book design until I
came up with the use of the arrows to separate the poems without the necessity of a page break. This
compromise in the book design allowed both readings and Denver later gave an interview with NPR
radio in which he praised this part of the books design.
4. Keeping with this innovation in the design process, Denver and I agreed to eschew normal pagination
of the book in favor of a Less/More marker that worked with the newly flowing design of the
collection.
Anatomy of a Design: Author Website for Sophia Starmack
1. When Sophia Starmack, an author at Deadly Chaps Press approached me about designing a website
to showcase her new book, I was confronted with the dilemma of creating a dynamic space on a
budget: she could afford 10 hours of my time to create both the front and back end of the site. Given
this constraint, I proposed a single page, scrolling design to optimize for mobile without a second set
of CSS.
2. With Sophia’s first book of poems serving as the focal point of the website, I adapted the book cover
(itself adapted from one of my art pieces), font (Baskerville Old Face) and color scheme for a simple
but elegant banner design.
3. Continuing with this emphasis on the newly released book, I designed a module to showcase the cover
with links to an ISSUU-based preview and a single-click point of sale using an integrated Paypal button.
4. To maximize the visual impact of the book excerpts, I worked with my assistant to create an Instagram-
friendly method of using artist tape to frame individual lines in the book. These snapshots were used
again on the Deadly Chaps Instagram feed, Facebook Page, and the author’s own business card.
5. With the single-page scrolling design, navigation links were an optional feature. Sophia expressed a
desire for site visitors to have a clear gateway to contacting her for book readings and RSVP to her
events. In response, I created two scroll-locked buttons on the header of the page that jumped site-
visitors down to the integrated Google Calendar and Jot Form which enabled these features.
Anatomy of a Design: LED Branches for Salinas NYC
1. This LED Lighting Design was commissioned in 2013 by Mary-Catherine Mikula, owner of Salinas NYC
as an accent piece for the restaurant’s beautiful indoor garden and dining room. Mary-Catherine
asked for a design that would integrate gracefully into the elegant furnishings already extant in the
space but also stand out as a new focal point for the room. Manzanita branches were chosen as the
base for a custom LED array, then wrapped in torn-up travel guide pages to provide a contrast to the
dark wood of the restaurant wall, while still evoking raw bark.
2. The branches were set into plaster blocks to smoothly transition the eye from the stone fireplace
below to the branches above. The modular design of the six parts to the installation allowed for the
design to be executed in the studio but customized during the one-day installation at the restaurant.
3. In keeping with the restaurant’s Spanish theme, the pages chosen for wrapping the branches feature
Spanish words that are revealed upon close inspection of the lighting installation.
4. Mary-Catherine was so pleased with the installation that she immediately commissioned a second
piece to anchor their main dining room, and later, a third for the bar. The lighting installations
continue to be three of the most popularly photographed features of the restaurant, appearing in
thousands of pictures appearing online in countless Instagram feeds and Facebook posts.
F I N E A R T
Anatomy of a Design: From Raw Materials to Archival Artwork
1. Using alternative materials in a Fine Art practice translates into a need for design-oriented thinking to
create the archival products desired by Galleries, Museums, and Collectors. The Color Volumes series
begins with a simple set of materials: Sea Salt, Modge Podge and LED lights. Slowly building these
three materials up into a rock-like structure results in an unusual art object. Yet, as alluring as this
object may be, it suffers from two problems: the LED lights have a 10 year life-cycle when in
continuous use and the adhesive will gradually yellow from acids inherent to all effective adhesives.
Both these problems make the sculptural piece itself less alluring to clients who value longevity in
their investment.
2. To surmount this type of problem, I have learned to think about the many non-archival sculptural
objects I have created in the studio as a secondary set of raw materials rather than final products in-
and-of themselves. For the Color Volumes series, the sculptural objects become the raw materials for
a photoshoot from which a suite of 8 high-resolution photographs becomes the final product.
3. Printed using the archival C-Print process and mounted to Dibond or traditional gallery frames, these
Limited Edition Photographs—evocative of alien landscapes—have become the Fine Art instantiation
of the sculptural object, sought out by discerning collectors for permanent displays.
S O C I A L M E D I A | Case Study 1
1. Started in 2015, the Instagram account for Joseph A. W. Quintela Fine Art Studio has used a
combination of engaging detail shots taken at various points in the studio process with savvy use of
hashtags in the photo descriptions to quickly garner a loyal following of art enthusiast on Instagram
2. Finished artwork is rarely posted, clearly delineating the feed from more commercial platforms
(such as Facebook and the artist’s website) and offering engagement on a purely social level to build
brand awareness without alienating the audience.
S O C I A L M E D I A | Case Study 2
The Instagram account for Deadly Chaps Press uses a three-pronged approach to showcase the work of
the authors featured in the presses 3-8 annual releases:
1. First, artistically rendered photos of pages in each book pull out memorable lines from the text using
artist tape and studio scraps to leverage an engaging aesthetic appropriate to the platform
2. Second, cropped photographs of book covers offer a more classic point of engagement that
highlights both author and product.
3. Short videos clips from readings showcases live events that demonstrate the author’s active
engagement with their readers.
JOSEPH A. W. QUINTELA
Curriculum Vitae | Fine Art & Design
w | www.josephquintela.com
t | 646.652.9116
EDUCATION
Sarah Lawrence College, Bachelor of Art, 4.0GPA, Graduated 2012
INDEPENDENT DESIGN
Website Design: www.sophiastarmack.com, www.alizatucker.com, www.smithandjonesart.com,
www.deadlychaps.com
Book Design: 2-8 titles per year for Deadly Chaps Press including layout, cover design, and
typesetting
Catalog Design: Art Catalogs for Smith&Jones Art and other independent artists and galleries
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
Between Two Worlds (Court Tree Collective, New York, 2016, forthcoming)
The Quarters Project: Collaborations with Samm Cohen (chashama 461 Gallery, New York, 2015)
Portrait of the Artist as the Cast of You in Eye (DUMBO SKY, New York, 2013)
FOOT | KNOTS (Project Space Envelope, New York, 2012)
GROUP EXHIBITIONS (selected)
Whatever The Sky Is, The Sky Is Blue, Curated by Denver Butson (VESPA, New York, 2015)
Art For The Heart (stage design), Curated by Courtney Jordan (Vanderbilt Republic, New York, 2015)
Feral City, Curated by Elisha Wagman (Undercurrent Projects, New York, 2015)
new Tech old Tech, Curated by Maddy Rosenberg (Central Booking, New York, 2015)
Don’t Pass Go, Press Start, Curated by Danielle Grega (Central Booking, New York, 2015)
Nocturne, Curated by Andrea Morin (LITM, New Jersey, 2015)
the sum of uncountable things, Curated by Denver Butson (Court Tree Collective, New York, 2015)
Scene of the Crime, Curated by Maddy Rosenberg (Central Booking, New York, 2015)
When I Was Seventeen, Curated by Nasrene Haj (The Creator’s Collective, New York, 2015)
Psyched, Curated by Maddy Rosenberg (Central Booking, New York, 2014)
Annual Photography Exhibition, Curated by Shawn James (Greenpoint Galleries, 2014)
Art For The Heart, Curated by Katie Peyton (Vanderbilt Republic, New York, 2014)
Books Without Words, Curated by Deadly Chaps Press (Undercurrent Projects, New York, 2014)
KISS: A Video Exhibition, Curated by Katie Peyton (Zona Trienta, Peru, 2014)
Mind-Roaming Journeys: Surreal Performances of Projection, Voice, and Text, Curated by Barbara
Rosenthal (Bowery Art + Science, NYC, 2013)
Definition (noun): the matter of us, Curated by Prudence Groube (Central Booking, NYC, 2013)
VIDEO ART
I Don’t Know Why We Disappear (2014), Director
#Bookdress | Blank Apple (2013), Co-Director (Co-Directed by Joseph A. W. Quintela, Aliza Tucker
and Prudence Groube)
Woman Without Umbrella (2013), Assistant Producer (Directed by Rachel Eliza Griffiths)
UnBound (2012), Concept, Set Design and Costuming (Directed by Rachel Eliza Griffiths)
PERFORMANCE ART
#Bookdress (2012-2013, NYC), ongoing living book project with appearances including the The
Strand, the MET, Central Booking
Collect Art Series (2011-2012, NYC), interactive performance series co-curated with Prudence Groube
Public-Works (2012), ShowDown (2012), ChopShop (2011), DarkRoom (2011), CrossFire (2011)
ONGOING SHOWINGS AND COMMERCIAL INSTALLATIONS
Central Booking (NYC, 2013), Book Record installed in ongoing showing
Salinas Restaurant (NYC, 2013), LED-lit branch and book sculptures (2) commissioned for 4-season
garden
Zeitguide (NYC, 2013), 2’x2’ wall-mounted book sculpture commissioned for office space
The Strand (NYC, 2012), 8’x2’ wall-mounted book sculpture permanently installed in Rare Books
Room
CURATORIAL
On Becoming Nicole Callihan, Group Exhibition at Court Tree Collective (New York, 2016 -
forthcoming)
Surreal Photographs, Solo Exhibition of work by Barbara Rosenthal at Galerie Protégé (New York,
2016 - forthcoming)
The Art of Healing, Group Exhibition at VESPA PROJECTS (New York, 2016 - forthcoming)
On the Record, Group Exhibition at Smith&Jones (New York, 2015)
Hot&Sticky, Group Exhibition at Smith&Jones (New York, 2015)
Jest Another Art Show, Group Exhibition at Smith&Jones (New York, 2015)
Love Is A Battlefield, Group Exhibition at Smith&Jones (New York, 2015)
Art For Benjamin, Group Exhibition at Smith&Jones (New York, 2014)
What Do You Want On Your Tombstone, Group Exhibition at Smith&Jones (New York, 2014)
Se Cayo Todo, Solo Exhibition of Drawings by Katie Peyton at Terrazzo Art Projects (New York, 2014)
Rite of Passage, Group Exhibition at Smith&Jones (New York, 2014)
BOOKS (POETRY)
Black Market, Publication Studio Malmo (Sweden, 2013)
Between Two Worlds, Patasola Press (USA, 2013)
This is not poetry. #poetry, The Red Ceiling Press (UK, 2011)
EDITORIAL
Senior Editor, Deadly Chaps Press (2009-ongoing): Independent press including quarterly magazine
titles by Doug Kearney, Rachel Eliza Griffiths, Rosaire Appel, Howie Good, and James Tolan
RESTAURANT EXPERIENCE
Head Bartender, Salinas NYC (2013 to present): Cocktail design, Training, and Management of Bar
Staff
Sommelier, Public NYC (2007 to 2010): Co-Managed Michelin Star Wine Program
REFERENCES
Restaurant: Amanda Boro, General Manager, Salinas Restaurant (3.5 years) – (212) 776-1990
Fine Art: Maddy Rosenberg, Gallery Director, Central Booking (2.5 years) – (347) 731-6559
Design: Katie Peyton, Art Advisor and Gallerist, Undercurrent Projects (3.5 years) – (917) 873-6959
A D D I T I O N A L P H O T O G R A P H S
Project: #Bookdress (Fine Art, 2013)
A D D I T I O N A L P H O T O G R A P H S
Project: Spines (Fine Art, 2013)
A D D I T I O N A L P H O T O G R A P H S
Project: I don’t Know Why We Disappear (Short Film, 2013)
