Todd Jannausch

This March, Traver Gallery is proud to welcome mixed-media sculptor, Todd Jannausch to the gallery. In his first solo exhibition at Traver Gallery, Jannausch, known for sculptures that transform everyday objects into poetic sculptures, creates an immersive domestic environment. The scene is comprised of altered ordinary objects; a table and chair penetrated by thousands of tiny holes, a mailbox bent over on itself, a hammock made entirely of improbably thin glass chains. Using gesture, repetition, and material fragility, Jannausch creates an environment that feels familiar yet parallel to our collective perception, offering a haunting look at how the items we encounter everyday carry meaning, and stories that are created and known uniquely by each of us.

Jannausch says of the work, “We can’t have the same experience as someone else…Our shared experience of objects brings this idea into three-dimensional space. We can walk around an object of familiarity and look at it from different angles. Observed, it may remain perfectly still, making us feel for a minute like time has stopped. At that moment, we can experience the life of that object. The story may come to us in many ways. We may experience it as an image or a movie or a scent we just noticed. With intention, we can experience it in our bodies. It may feel like heat or pressure, or joy. It may be a deep breath you didn’t take but was given to you. It may feel similar to the sensation as pain.”

Originally from Michigan, Todd Jannausch spent his early career as a ship fitter in the Navy and as a professional shipwright before transitioning to a career focused on art. Since that time, he has taught and worked at Pratt Fine Arts Center, The University of Puget Sound, Two Ravens Studio and Foundry, and Grand Image. In addition to teaching and fabrication, Jannausch co-founded Feast Arts Center in Tacoma, where he curated exhibitions and created community-driven arts events. He has received numerous awards and grants, including a 2015 Artist Trust Fellowship award. His work has been exhibited regionally at the Frye Art Museum and Bellevue Art Museum.