Podcast Summary: All Of It with Alison Stewart

Episode: How Brooklyn-based Artist Leonardo Drew Works With Paper Pulp

Date: March 18, 2026
Host: Alison Stewart (WNYC)
Guest: Leonardo Drew, Contemporary Artist

Episode Overview

This episode dives into the innovative sculptural practice of Brooklyn-based artist Leonardo Drew, with special focus on his new works in paper pulp and the simultaneous exhibitions of his art in New York City and Connecticut. Host Alison Stewart speaks with Drew about his process, the influence of place and travel, his artistic evolution, and the spiritual underpinnings of his work. The conversation is candid, personal, and full of energetic, humorous asides, revealing the breadth and depth of Drew’s creative journey.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Leonardo Drew’s Latest Exhibitions

• Pace Prints Show, Chelsea:
  • Features Drew’s recent handmade paper pulp works, which stretch the boundaries of printmaking into new sculptural territory.
  • Drew describes these pieces as having the visual impact of sculpture but made from paper pulp, challenging traditional definitions of prints and sculptures.
• Bruce Museum, Greenwich, CT:
  • "Alchemy" show, presenting a broader survey of two decades of innovation with paper and material experimentation.

Working with Paper Pulp (03:05–05:34)

• Explaining Paper Pulp as a Medium:
  • Drew describes it as, “a variation of mushed paper … you would think [paper is] alien to sculpture. But in the end, if you can master … shaping it, you can get just about anything from it.” (03:09)
• Physical Demands and Forgiveness of the Medium:
  • He notes, “It's forgiving … being a sculptor, there's a beating that happens to the body. I've already had, like, three operations in the last three years.” (03:50)
  • “I look like an MMA fighter … I'm strapped for action. It's a war in the studio.” (04:11)
• Artist’s Intent & Viewer Experience:
  • On the title “Tattered Quilts”: “I never, absolutely never talk about absolutes when it comes to actually what you’re supposedly getting out of the work...The fact that I number these things is for a reason. It’s so that you could have a full on experience without me telling you what to experience.” (04:54)

Pushing Boundaries in Printmaking (05:49–07:29)

• Drew recounts a 15-year collaboration with Pace Print’s master printmakers:
  • “They thought if I came in, it would get the language of printmaking a lot closer to actual sculpture or painting…we’ve added something to the language of printmaking because we just kept pushing the envelope.” (05:49)
  • Highlighting accessibility: “Being able to get a visual and feel of a sculpture and have the price point of a print…we’ve added something to the vocabulary.” (06:34)

The Introduction of Color & Influence of Travel (07:48–10:03)

• Color in Drew’s Work:
  • “Color is now a part of how I see things. Before that… a lot of monochromatic black and white…But now with color, it’s relatively new—probably the last, maybe, six years.” (07:55)
• Travel as Creative Fuel:
  • “The idea that you can become a receiver of information, an antenna…when you're moving around…these cradles of civilization, they will feed you through your pores…They need to come out [into your art]. If you become in tune with your surroundings, yeah, you'd be more respectful of nature and all things.” (09:00)
  • “Travel is an absolute super additive to anyone’s existence.” (09:59)
  • Recommendation: “On your bucket list should be the Nazca lines and obviously Machu Picchu…these are journeys that physically take a toll, but are so rewarding.” (10:03)

The "Alchemy" Show & Influences (11:35–12:57)

• On Being an Alchemist in the Studio:
  • “There’s the kind of experimenting that happens and sort of forced growth because of that. Experimenting, yeah. It’s a perfect title.” (11:35)
• Visual Inspiration—Grids, Not Quilts:
  • “If I were to step back, I know that in my past life… when I grew up in the projects of Bridgeport…they were grids…these grids are highly influenced by those buildings, the shapes, the actual gravitas, the weight of being.” (12:10)

Artistic Origins and Early Mentors (12:57–15:31)

• Inborn Creativity and Mentorship:
  • “You’re born an artist…I’ve been at this all my life, almost an addict at making things.” (12:59)
  • On his mother’s skepticism: “If you’re growing up in the hood…she’s thinking about a future. The arts? No … she was just being careful about you.” (14:06)
  • Mentors: “Richard Stamates and Ben Johnson and Bill Collins and Wendy Bridgeforth…made me realize that this addiction that I had for making was something that needed to be really pursued. I started exhibiting at 13 because of them.” (14:34, 15:31)

Turning Points: Letting Go of Drawing (15:41–18:06)

• Breaking Away from Drawing:
  • “I was approached by DC and Marvel…they were using [the Superman movie] as the bargaining chip…But I was already poisoned. I had seen Jackson Pollock’s work…and from there it took the top of my head off.” (15:45)
  • “If I was gonna get to that door, Jackson Pollock, I was gonna have to make a sacrifice. Tie your hands now. Figure out how to create not using all those things that were your strengths…but it happened.” (15:58)
• Power of Discovery through Art History:
  • “Even in black and white, Jackson Pollock was powerful. That should say something about what’s the essence of what he was doing…we wouldn’t be having this conversation if I hadn’t gone through that door.” (17:31–18:06)

Studio Practice & Place (18:29–21:28)

• Dual Studios: Brooklyn & San Antonio:

  • “In San Antonio, you can see the sky, you can see the stars…It's a small ranch and I’m just out there by myself. You can have this inward journey and clarity…I'm creating out there too. Clarity is probably the biggest gift.” (18:41–19:49)
  • “Brooklyn…I'm rejuvenated, recharged, and I can get back in and see things clear…It's this constant drumbeat, but you need to turn off the switch to reset.” (19:45–20:30)

• Studio Rituals & Multitasking:

  • “I just get up and I go downstairs, I go to work, you know, that's the ritual…usually rotating seven things in the studio, I call them seven crying babies. They all need attention so you have to kind of bounce around and feed each one and they influence each other.” (20:34–21:21)
  • “Whoever screams the loudest.” (21:28)

Looking Ahead (21:32–22:27)

• Excitement for New Public Openings:
  • “I've been exhibiting for 13 years…it's always something new…but it's great to be able to go in and actually know that someone's coming in and they're gonna introduce you to something.” (21:37)
  • “You’d be somebody's Jackson Pollock.” (22:12)

Notable Quotes

• “It's a war in the studio.” (Leonardo Drew, 04:11)
• “I never talk about absolutes…so telling everyone it’s like tattered quilts—let’s erase that right now.” (Leonardo Drew, 04:54)
• “We've added something to the language of printmaking because we just kept pushing the envelope.” (Leonardo Drew, 06:34)
• “Travel is an absolute super additive to anyone’s…existence.” (Leonardo Drew, 09:59)
• “You’re born an artist…some of us, it takes maybe a second to realize that fact. But I am from this, from the womb to now.” (Leonardo Drew, 12:59)
• “Tie your hands now. Figure out how to create, not using all those things that were your strengths.” (Leonardo Drew, 15:58)
• “Clarity is probably the biggest gift in all this, I will tell you. So having a time to sort of reset and have that clarity of reset, it's nothing like it.” (Leonardo Drew, 20:30)
• “Usually rotating seven things in the studio…seven crying babies. They all need attention.” (Leonardo Drew, 21:21)
• “It's great to be able to go in and actually know that someone's coming in and they're gonna introduce you to something.” (Leonardo Drew, 22:12)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Paper pulp explained & materiality: 03:09–05:34
• Printmaking pushed into sculpture: 05:49–07:29
• Color, travel, & influence of place: 07:48–10:03
• Alchemy show origins & inspiration: 11:35–12:57
• Artistic beginnings, mentorship: 12:57–15:31
• Letting go of drawing, impact of Pollock: 15:41–18:06
• Brooklyn vs. San Antonio studios: 18:29–19:49
• Studio rituals, multitasking: 20:30–21:28
• Exhibition excitement & closing reflections: 21:32–22:27

Memorable Moments

• Leonardo Drew’s humor about his physical toll as a sculptor: “I look like an MMA fighter…It's a war in the studio.” (04:11)
• Drawing the line on “tattered quilts” as a label for his art: A playful but firm rebuke, refusing to pin down interpretations (04:54).
• A vivid image of his studio life: Managing “seven crying babies” (21:21).
• The poetic note on artistic inspiration and legacy: “You’d be somebody’s Jackson Pollock.” (22:12)

Tone and Style

Throughout the interview, Drew is energetic, candid, and witty, favoring vivid metaphors and self-deprecating humor. Stewart’s questions elicit thoughtful, deeply personal insights about the art-making process, persistence, and the role of place and mentorship. The tone marries reverence for art history and material discovery with everyday perseverance and humility.

This episode is a rich, engaging exploration of material innovation, personal history, and the artistry of seeing the world—and its materials—with new eyes. Recommended listening for artists, art enthusiasts, and anyone curious about the lived reality behind breakthrough creative work.