ANDY PAIKO x DR WOO
Fragile Gardens
ANDY PAIKO x DR WOO
Fragile Gardens
Etching Stories in Tattooed Glass
WEXLER GALLERY / PHILADELPHIA 1811 Frankford avenue
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19125
215-923-7030
646-293-6603
ANDY PAIKO x DR WOO
Fragile Gardens
Wexler Gallery proudly announces a groundbreaking collaboration between renowned glass artist Andy Paiko and famed tattoo artist Dr. Woo, with three unique works that debuted at Design Miami 2024. This partnership merges glass artistry, tattoo culture, and design, featuring intricately crafted reliquary jars blown by Paiko and etched with Woo’s signature tattoo imagery. These works explore the duality of fragility and strength in glass, while scrutinizing memory, permanence, and the human desire to preserve experiences.
Paiko’s blown glass vessels, inspired by 17th-century reliquaries, serve as containers for sacred memories, much like tattoos etched onto the body as living reliquaries of personal narratives and emotions. This collab- oration blurs the line between the external and internal, the container and the contained, inviting viewers to reflect on how memory, identity, and sacredness intertwine. Both mediums transform chosen elements into timeless, deeply human expressions of preservation.
ANDY PAIKO
Based in Portland, Oregon, glass artist Andy Paiko is known for ambitious, technical works which explore the metaphorical and symbolic tension of form versus function. His work has been featured in such national and international print publications as American Craft, HiFructose, Make, Glass Art Quarterly, the Corning Museum’s New Glass Review, and is included in public museum and private collections worldwide. Some recent exhibitions include the Renwick Gallery of Decorative Art at the Smithsonian’s 40 Under 40: Craft Futures, and the Museum of Fine Arts Boston’s Crafted: Objects in Flux. In 2015 Paiko received a Louis Comfort Tiffany Biennial Award.
DR WOO
Dr. Woo, celebrated for his hyper-detailed, single-needle tattoo designs, brings his expertise in capturing personal stories to this collaboration. Known for blending minimalism with complexity, Woo’s imagery gains new dimension in glass, bridging personal storytelling with universal themes of memory and connection. This partnership marks a profound evolution in both artists’ practices, uniting traditional craftsmanship and con- temporary design.
Fragile Gardens: #1, 2024
Etched Glass, brass, steel, leather, shells
101 x 15.5 x 15.5 inches
43.5 x 11 x 11 inches
Fragile Gardens: #2, 2024
Etched Glass, brass, steel
Etched Glass, brass, steel
42 x 11 x 11 inches
Fragile Gardens: #3, 2024
