Bobbi Mastrangelo was born Barbara Ann Betschen on May 16, 1937 in

Youngstown, Ohio Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio, and the largest city and county seat of Mahoning County, Ohio, Mahoning County. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Youngstown had a city population of 60,068. It is a principal city of ...

. She is an artist specializing in relief sculpture, mixed media, and fiber art including handmade

cast paper Cast Paper is a paper crafting technique in which paper fiber or pulp, such as cotton fiber paper, is formed using a mold. The pulp may consist of pure fiber, or be an amalgam of fiber, binder, and filler, such as Papier-mâché. The technique ...

. Her work is best known for its unusual focus on the theme of manhole covers and water covers, grates and drains. Her art has been exhibited widely throughout the United States and is in the collections in several museums.

Biography

Bobbi Mastrangelo was not originally trained as an artist, but instead graduated with a degree in Elementary Education from SUNY in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

, where she met her future husband Alfred. After a career as a teacher and while raising her children, she enrolled in art classes in New York state and studied

printmaking Printmaking is the process of creating artworks by printing, normally on paper, but also on fabric, wood, metal, and other surfaces. "Traditional printmaking" normally covers only the process of creating prints using a hand processed techniq ...

and

papermaking Papermaking is the manufacture of paper and cardboard, which are used widely for printing, writing, and packaging, among many other purposes. Today almost all paper is made using industrial machinery, while handmade paper survives as a speciali ...

under the tutelage of professors including Dan Welden, Gail Cohen Edelman, Clare Romano and John Ross (authors of "The Complete Printmaker"). Mastrangelo's art theme developed during her studies with Master Printer Dan Welden, who advised her to focus on a theme or a style for her identity as an artist. After viewing photographs of previous sketches and paintings, her

art history Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

professor, Lawrence Alloway, pointed out that circular themes dominated. When she discovered photographs of manhole covers in an art history book, Mastrangelo realized that she had found the perfect theme. Using manhole cover rubbings and photos for reference, Mastrangelo developed a technique for creating trompe l’oeil relief works called "Grate Works" The realistic street and sidewalk scenes using manhole covers or water covers have been created in many media: collagraph prints on handmade paper, fiber art, foam relief works, assemblages and installations. Named by news reporters as Cover Girl or The Grate Lady, Mastrangelo continues to create art work for exhibitions, solo shows and commissions.

Style and social statement

Bobbi Mastrangelo's activities as a community leader against littering, environmental pollution, and in promotion of

water conservation Water conservation includes all the policies, strategies and activities to sustainably manage the natural resource of fresh water, to protect the hydrosphere, and to meet the current and future human demand (thus avoiding water scarcity). Populati ...

are themes reflected in her art. Manhole-themed

collage Collage (, from the french: coller, "to glue" or "to stick together";) is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole. ...

s made from handmade paper may incorporate found objects or impressions of street litter, bottle caps and discarded cigarette butts. Eco-conscious messages are sometimes written on the work itself. She created assemblages and an outdoor installation titled "Hazardous Waste Site" warning of the dangers of

toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subst ...

and

medical waste Biomedical waste or hospital waste is any kind of waste containing infectious (or potentially infectious) materials. It may also include waste associated with the generation of biomedical waste that visually appears to be of medical or laboratory ...

at Islip Art Museum’s "Outdoor Sculpture Now" exhibit on

Long Island, New York Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18th ...

in July 1989. Mastrangelo's body of work includes using diverse materials such as metal, wood, paint, paper, fiber, canvas, cement, builders’ foam sheets and spray foam. Larger works measure up to 60 inches long, and may be framed or unframed wall pieces or three-dimensional sculpture. From 1991 – 2015, Mastrangelo participated in National Postcard Week, celebrated annually during the first full week of May. Each year, one of her art works or art happenings was reproduced as a color post card for NPCW. Her themes varied from

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and manageme ...

, American Pride,

anti-terrorism Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, business, and intelligence agencies use to combat or el ...

and types of manhole cover designs to appreciation for our Public Works Systems. The artist received post cards, from all over The USA, The UK and The Philippines. These post cards, as well as copies of her originals, were documented and saved in special albums which are housed in the archives of the Yorktown Museum in Yorktown Heights NY.

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

2019 "Grate Works of Art" Cultural Center: Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 2016-2017 "Plastics Undercover" - "Grate Works of Art"

Orange County Regional History Center The Orange County Regional History Center is a private non-profit history museum located in downtown Orlando, Florida, United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or Ameri ...

Orlando, FL Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures relea ...

2013 "Manhole Messages" Islip Art Museum at MacArthur Airport:

Ronkonkoma, NY Ronkonkoma ( ) is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) on Long Island in the Administrative divisions of New York#Town, Town of Islip, New York, United States. Its population was 19,082 at the 2010 United States census, 2 ...

2011 "Water Works" Toho Water Authority Gallery: Kissimmee FL 2010 "Sewers of the World, Unite" 2006 "Grate Works" Osceola Arts Center: Kissimmee FL 2004 "Underfoot: Manhole & Other Covers" The Attleboro Area Industrial Museum: MA 2003 "Grate Works" Toast Gallery:

Port Jefferson, NY Port Jefferson (informally known as "Port Jeff") is an incorporated village in the town of Brookhaven in Suffolk County, New York, on the North Shore of Long Island. Officially known as the Incorporated Village of Port Jefferson, the populatio ...

1998 "Grate Works"

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, MD: Museum of Public Works 1997 "Permanent Collection of Grate Works" Islip Art Museum: East Islip, NY 1994 "Manhole Covers" Invitational, New York Hall of Science: Corona 1993–1999 "Water Works III" Suffolk County (NY) Water Authority

Group exhibitions

2022 “Dream Shapes" Florida Sculptors Guild at Osceola Arts, Kissimmee FL 2020 "The Genius of Women in the Arts" Orlando FL Public Library 2016 "Sight Unseen: Touchable Sculpture" Albin Polasek Museum, Winter Park FL 2014 "Best of the Best" The Mayor’s Gallery, City Hall, Orlando FL 2014 "Best of the Best" (May: 1st Thursday) Orlando Museum of Art 1st Thursdays' Winners 2011 "75th National Midyear Exhibition" Butler Institute of American Art: Youngstown, Ohio 2010 "CURATE THIS! 2010" Denver Biennial of the Americas: The Beca Foundation 2010 "Water S(our)ce" Gwinnett Environmental & Heritage Center: Buford GA 2004 "NY Collects Buffalo State" Burchfield-Penney Art Center: Buffalo, NY 1999 "Winners Showcase Exhibit" Smithtown, NY Arts Council 1995 "Listen to the Earth" (Invitational) Hamilton College: Clinton, NY 1992 "City Views" Staller Arts Center SUNY: Stony Brook, NY 1988 "Water Works" Mills Pond House Gallery St. James NY

Gallery

File:Mastrangelo Buckeye 1 1985.jpg, ''Buckeye #1'' (1985), sculpture relief, 19 x 25 x 2 in. (48.26 x 63.5 x 10.16 cm), artist's collection File:John E Potente & Sons 1985.jpg, ''John E Potente & Sons'' (1985), collagraph, 24 x 30 in. (60.96 x 76.2 cm), Heckscher Museum Huntington, NY File:Mastrangelo-Three Sewer Hitter-1995.jpg, ''Three Sewer Hitter'' (1985), sculpture relief, 34 x 30 x 4 in. ( 86.36 x 76.2 x 10.16 cm), artist's collection File:Mastrangelo - Water Service - 2-20 - 1985.jpg, ''Water Service'' 2/20 (1985), collagraph, HM Paper, 24 x 30 in. ( 60.96 x 76.2 cm), Nassau Community College Garden City, NY File:Mastrangelo - Borough of Manhattan - 1986.jpg, ''Borough of Manhattan'' (1986), sculpture relief, 36 x 48 x 4 in. (91.44 x 121.92 x 10.16 cm), Zimmerli Art Museum File:Mastrangelo_-_Metropolitan_Cover_-_1997.jpg, ''Metropolitan Cover'' (1997), sculpture relief, 48 x 36 x 5 in. (121.92 x 91.44 x 10.16 cm), artist's collection File:Mastrangelo - Blue Bello 2 - 6-10 - 1998.jpg, ''Blue Bello #2'' 6/10 (1998), embossed linocut on hand-made paper, 24 x 30 in (60.96 x 76.2 cm), artist's collection File:Mastrangelo_-_When_the_People_Care_-_6-10_-_2000.jpg, ''When the People Care'' 6/10 (2000), collagraph-collage on hand-made paper, 32 x 24 in. (81.28 x 60.96 cm), Islip Art Museum, E. Islip, NY File:Mastrangelo_-_DWI_-_2002.jpg, ''DWI'' (2002), mixed media relief, 20 x 16 x 2.5 in. (50.8 x 40.64 x 6.35 cm), Islip Art Museum, E. Islip, NY File:Mastrangelo_-_City_of_Orlando_-_2011.jpg, ''City of Orlando'' (2011), sculpture relief, 48 x 31 x 3 in (121.96 x 78.74 x 7.62 cm), artist's collection File:Mastrangelo_-_Reuse_-_2013.jpg, ''Reuse'' (2013), sculpture relief, 12 x 17 x 2in (30.48 x 43.18 x 5.08 cm), artist's collection File:Mastrangelo_-_Mars_Future_Grate_-_2020.jpg, ''Mars Future Grate'' (2020), sculpture 28 x 28 x 8 in. (71.12 x 71.12 x 20.32 cm), artist's collection

References

External links

* http://freelinemediaorlando.com/poinciana-artist-tries-to-merge-sculptures-with-a-sense-of-patriotism-and-pride-in-being-an-american/ * http://www.thesunchronicle.com/articles/2009/11/08/go/6371969.txt * https://web.archive.org/web/20110430161028/http://www.stacarts.org/a/bobbi-mastrangelo * https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2006-02-26-oartist26-story.html * http://www.sewerhistory.org/grfx/misc/cultur.htm#mastrangelo * http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2001-09-02/entertainment/0109020256_1_manhole-covers-public-works-museum-cover-art * https://bobbimastrangelo.com/modern-casting-magazine-sept-2010-artists-bobbi-mastrangelo-kim-christiansen/ * http://www.heckscher.org/pages.php?which_page=collection_artist_detail&which_artist=524 {{DEFAULTSORT:Mastrangelo, Bobbi 1937 births American artists Living people American women sculptors 21st-century American women