Meet Joseph Lazzari: Artist/Furniture Maker/Musician

We had the good fortune of connecting with Joseph Lazzari and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Joseph, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I think risk taking is trusting your abilities to take you places that your stress and anxiety tell you that you can’t go – and that’s paramount to growth and success. I try to avoid low hanging fruit in life and work. I don’t want to copy existing designs, follow recipes, or settle for whites convenient – I want to dream up something different and jump up at it until I reach something close to it. I hope I’m always pushing at the edges of my comfort zone, looking for what’s next and taking risks to get there. 

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I’m an artist, furniture maker, musician, and all the things in between at times. I’ve worked as a welder, a woodworker, and as a scenic artist and I picked up as many skills as I could along the way. I think what sets me apart is being able to jump across disciplines fluidly. I can sell a large oil painting on Friday, start a custom dining room table on Monday, be welding up a one-off rolling coffee cart by week’s end, then I’m jumping in the van to go play shows over the weekend (pre 2020 obviously). I always have a lot of irons in the fire, so I can get spread thin and my output can slow down because of it, but I mostly appreciate that my work is always shifting. I especially love it when my varied disciplines intersect, like making art for album covers, building a custom recording studio desk, or working extensively on the restoration of the Battle of Atlanta Cyclorama as both a painter and a sculptor. Ive been self-employed for about six years now. I couldn’t bare to keep punching a clock while daydreaming all day about being an artist and living on my own terms, so I quit two jobs on the same day and just leapt into the fire. I had very little money and no clear plan yet, so I freelanced for a couple different local businesses for the first year or so, while I acquired tools and searched for a large affordable studio space. Its been the absolute hardest thing I’ve ever done, but I don’t regret a bit of it. I’ve learned so much, I’ve made so many things for homes, businesses, and museums, and I’m still here! over the years I’ve learned to invest in the best tools I’m able to. the cheap stuff will just slow you down until it lets you down completely. A huge part of believing in yourself and your work is to properly equip yourself.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
There are so many places I’ve missed this year. If I could step outside of this pandemic for a week and hang out with friends in a normal way, I’d most love to visit The EARL and 529 to watch and play live music again. Independent music venues are a staple of American culture and they are closing their doors for good at an alarming rate right now. check https://www.saveourstages.com for more info. here’s a shortlist of places I love: Red’s Beer Garden Wonderkid Beer Girl Mami’s The Deer and the Dove Drip Don Chon Hankook Don Sigue Pit Boss The EARL

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I have far too many friends who are artists, musicians, writers, thinkers, and teachers to list here, but they know who they are. without their wisdom, support, encouragement, and inspiration, I’d certainly be no where. a special shoutout to my beautiful partner, Jenae, for having me at my best and my worst and to my Mom for telling me to “just go and do what makes you happy” way back when.

Website: www.josephlazzari.com
Instagram: @joseph_lazzari
Other: www.reconcileratl.bandcamp.com