Jack Wax makes objects in glass and mixed media that are both conceptual and emotional. They are abstract and formal, but also very personal. For Wax, the creation of sculptural form is tied to memory, to the experience of emotions processed not only through the mind but also through the body. Wax made the Hosts while reflecting on his experience of living for six years in Japan. For him, a perfect host is someone who puts the visitor at ease, is honestly interested in what he or she has to say, and makes one feel welcome by offering his home as the visitor’s home. In Japan, Wax always felt like a guest, never at home and never truly welcome. “Host (Gold) and Host (Iron) are two small, quiet monuments that address my feelings and thoughts on the experiences of being a gaijin [foreigner] in Japan,” Wax says. “[I felt] . . . exposed to a quiet and subtle racism, sexism, and ageism to a degree that I had never before . . . experienced. Subsequently, [I made] . . . my decisions about ‘white’ hair, ‘brown’ hair, aged/rusted ‘iron’ hair, and tarnishing ‘gold’ hair.” Although the sculptures are similar, Wax’s intention is to reiterate, but not duplicate, the concerns that they address. The Hosts illustrate Wax’s preference, at the time, for collections of objects offering opportunities for comparison and dialogue. The wigs, or heads of hair, are meant to be serial and are presented in a formal way. They symbolize “sameness,” “otherness,” and a tendency to conformity that reflect Wax’s sense of displacement. Host (Gold) signed “Jack L Wax / 9-96” and “Jack L Wax / signed -1997 / June 3rd / HOSTS / (GOLD)”; Host (Iron) signed “Jack L. Wax” and “HOST (IRON) / Jack L. Wax / June 5, 1997.” Published in Susanne K. Frantz, Yoriko Mizuta, and Helmut Ricke, The Glass Skin, Corning: The Corning Museum of Glass, 1998, pp. 110–111.