DOMINIC QUAGLIOZZI

Left: Piss Cup, 2014. Acrylic and silicone on canvas, 32 by 34 inches. Photo: Courtesy of the Artist.

Right: Wipes, 2014. Acrylic and silicone on canvas, 32 by 34 inches. Photo: Courtesy of the Artist.

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Artist Dominic Quagliozzi has cystic fibrosis and was the recipient of a double lung transplant in 2015 after being on the waiting list for 3.5 years. Both before and after the transplant, Quagliozzi spent a significant amount of time in the hospital. Wipes and Piss Cup from his Image Crafting Series visualize his time in the hospital from a first-person perspective. Pissing into a cup to provide a urine sample and wiping down his legs with a sterilizing towelette demonstrate a very literal and bodily form of self-care, but creating these paintings was also a way of dealing with his illness psychologically, emotionally, and therapeutically. This series suggests how painting also can be an act of self-care.

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Dominic Quagliozzi (b. 1982), lives and works in Los Angeles, CA. His work is primarily autobiographically follows his health and medical issues from his genetic disease Cystic Fibrosis and being a recipient of a double lung transplant. He holds a BA in Sociology from Providence College and a MFA in Studio Arts from Cal State University, Los Angeles. He has exhibited work in Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Providence and Denmark.

He states his artistic goal is to make work that fosters an open dialogue for an empathetic exchange surrounding illness and disease. Using situations within his life as starting points for reflection, he makes work that brings into focus the nature of chronic illness, disability and societal implications of illness.