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Weigh In Holmdel: If you could live anywhere...?!
11/01/2007 - By Beth Burke
Weigh In
If you could live anywhere...?!
Jesse Greenberg’s secret identity isn’t so secret anymore. Most days, he’s occupied with his regular job as a managerial financial analyst for IBM; but whenever he can get away – when family responsibilities permit – he goes to his version of the Bat Cave. His art studio, “The Greenberg Atelier,” is where he shifts into his not-so-secret identity as a serious up-and-coming sculptor.
Jesse’s no beginner at his craft. Starting at age 12, and for several years afterwards, he attended the Art Students’ League in New York City; he’s been working hard at being a sculptor, on and off, for over 20 years, and many of his pieces are part of private collections around the world, but recently his work has become more recognized. In 2001 he was featured in the Monmouth County Arts Council Juried Art Exhibit, and currently, one of his larger and more important pieces – “Lovers Embrace” – is on display at The Shore Institute of the Contemporary Arts [SICA] outdoor sculpture exhibition, “SCULPTOURE,” at Pier Village in Long Branch, through October 19, 2007. This sculpture is described on his website www.jessegreenberg.net; “the gentle, flowing lines of the piece…are intended to represent the fusion of two human forms embracing one another. Some also see it as a single human form… This monumental work is the first in a series which the artist is calling ‘Larger than Life’ – a body of work that will comprise pieces that exceed human scale, while symbolizing and paying tribute to the interactions between humans. This first piece in the series is constructed using epoxy resin and bronze metal paint on a steel and Styrofoam armature with a green patina.” His website also has a short video of the construction of the piece, as well as photos of some of his earlier works (some are for sale).
Many of his pieces combine the attributes of abstraction with an organic appearance, allowing the viewer to question where to draw the line or whether there are, in fact, lines to be drawn between the two. This parallels a dichotomy that the author himself admits to – using both the right and left halves of his brain in different ways and toward different ends. As science has shown, the left brain is primarily devoted to more structured, rational, “mundane” tasks, while the right brain is reserved for the more irrational, creative, artistic ones. Jesse feels compelled to use both.
If he “had his ‘druthers” he admits he’d be a full-time artist; but there are, apparently, things called bills; so, in the workaday world he has managed to apply his education (he earned an MBA from NYU in 1992, after getting his BA in art history from Columbia University) to his current work for IBM, as well as using the experience he gained as a manufacturer’s representative while working with his father for 10 years.
Jesse grew up in northern Jersey, but has lived in Marlboro for almost 10 years. He is married and has three children, all of whom, in their own ways, have exhibited some artistic inclinations of their own. He has developed a fondness for the town, the diversity of its people, and the school system, and has a strong sense of community. As part of his artistic nature, he appreciates Marlboro’s variety of backgrounds, ethnicities, and cultures. Asked about influences, he says that no one in his family was artistically inclined, although his family – especially his mother – always encouraged him to pursue his art. He credits his high school, Dwight-Englewood, for its strong arts program, and admires abstract expressionism, particularly Henry Moore, in the field of sculpture.
As for his future plans, he hopes to produce at least one large piece each year, and for his works to “find a home.” The challenge, he says, is not just for him to be recognized, but for his work to be relevant – to inspire some happiness, peace, or thought in people…to make a connection. This is why, he says, he’s recently turned from producing smaller pieces to doing grandiose ones. By having them occupy a public space, he feels they are more likely to reach people and move them; it’s a natural outgrowth of his innate feelings. “You have to have a passion in life,” he says, “and follow it.” – by Rich Fireman
Are you or someone you know in Marlboro a “Person on the Move”? If you’ve got a story to tell this could be you! E-mail a brief description to us at info@livinginmedia.com and let us know who you are.
Boxes (side notes):
STATS
Favorite restaurants: Peter Luger’s Steakhouse and Ponte’s (both in NYC)
Favorite musician: no favorite musician, but I enjoy many genres, especially country, rock, and jazz
Favorite movies: Raging Bull and The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz
Pet peeve: one-way relationships; life is a two-way street
Three people you would like to have dinner with: Henry Moore, Robert De Niro, and Muhammad Ali
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