Years ago, I went into my bathroom to brush my teeth and while doing so began to hear other teeth brushing sounds. It hit me; my neighbor and I were staring at the same spot on the wall due to apartment plumbing. This started a series of investigative works that responded through painting, drawing, and film to sounds thin walls were unable to contain. In the middle of the process I was affected by a neighbor’s dramatic removal from their apartment that was followed by silence. Sounds like that night are limited, might be amusing, can be an annoyance, sometimes are alarming, but they represent human qualities that have become valuable to me. This developed in me an interest to interact with others and describe through art stories about people, relationships, history, spaces, and shared environments. As a result, I developed a personal and community-based art practice called ThinWalls Studio

Today ThinWalls Studio is a roving creative arts practice focused on both my personal and collaborative community driven projects. I divide time creating and teaching art, currently working as a Professor of Art at Prince George's Community College in Largo, Maryland. I have spent a fair amount of time asking myself why I make art. The rationale I have settled on is that I am trying to be a better person. Creating, communicating, and engaging with other people through my art provides key moments that have helped me shift paradigms and grow. ThinWalls Studio is designed to help me find those moments. If you have ideas, suggestions, projects, or a desire to figure out how to connect what you are doing please reach out.  
​- Josh Ostraff

---