About

Photo: Megan Karson

Andy Julo
b. 1986, Kansas City, Missouri
Currently lives in Tucson, Arizona

Artist Statement

I am inspired by the practice of religious ritual, discarded material culture, and vernacular manifestations of belief. Through my work, I am interested in re-imagining traditional iconographies, narratives and symbolic codes within a contemporary context by questioning assumed boundaries that dictate what is perceived as sacred and profane. It is my aim to encourage new readings of traditional forms and inherited identities.

Photo: Reed Young

Work Experience

Graduate Associate | University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona | January 2025-Present

Director | Verostko Center for the Arts
Latrobe, PA | June 2019-October 2024

Curator | Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collections
Latrobe, PA | July 2018-October 2024

Curatorial Assistant | Hallmark Art Collection
Kansas City, MO | March 2017-July 2018

Framer and Installation Technician | Ward & Ward Fine Art Framing & Gallery
Kansas City, MO | November 2010–June 2018

Art & Environment Liaison | St. Francis Xavier Parish
Kansas City, MO | November 2013-July 2018

Graduate Teaching Assistant | University of Missouri-Kansas City
Kansas City, MO | August 2014 – May 2016

Service Learning Coordinator | Donnelly College
Kansas City, KS | January 2010–August 2014

Community Arts Space Coordinator | Donnelly College
Kansas City, KS | March 2011–August 2014

Gallery Consultant | Farm to Market Bread Co.
Kansas City, MO | May 2013–January 2014

Benedictine Volunteer | Il Monastero di San Benedetto
Subiaco, Italy | September 2009–September 2010

Intern & Exhibitions Assistant | Hill Museum & Manuscript Library
Collegeville, MN | August 2007–May 2009

Retail Associate | Durwin Rice Art & Antiques
Kansas City, MO | March 2006–August 2007

Photo: Liz Palmer

Writings

Impressionist Legacies: The Michael and Aimee Rusinko Kakos Collection. Andrew Julo & Jennifer Thompson. Saint Vincent College: 2023.

Art Nourishes Life: Selections from the Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collections. Andrew Julo, Douglas Dodds, Nathan Cochran & Roman Verostko. Saint Vincent College: 2020.

Review of Art and Architecture for Congregational Worship: The Search for a Common Ground by Richard S. Vosko. Andrew Julo. Journal of Moral Theology: 2020. pp. 213-215.

Andy Warhol's Catholic identity in focus in faith-centered exhibition. Andrew Julo. National Catholic Reporter: Jan. 25, 2020.

Select Curatorial Projects

"Three Story Drawing Machine" by Roman Verostko

Imaging the Unseen: Roman Verostko, 1929-2024 | Fall 2024

"Despite staunch resistance from those who maintained computer-assisted drawing would never be considered art, generative art pioneer Roman Verostko remained resolute in revealing a universe of visual forms that do not 're-present' the world as previous generations has sought to do but rather make visible the invisible. Imaging the Unseen investigates the artist’s sustained interest in creating abstractions that communicate ideas linked to theology, mathematics, and language."

Patrick Schmidt installs "Color, Line, and Movement; Responding to Severini"

Shared Concerns: Associated Artists of Pittsburgh + Saint Vincent Art & Heritage Collections | Spring 2024

"Pairing selections culled from Saint Vincent’s holdings with recently completed works by regional contemporary artists is intended to forge new resonances between the motivations of creatives working across time; reminding us that artists have long communicated to viewers what is sacred, overlooked, under threat, and is possible. Shared Concerns also reveals the similarities and divergences between historical forms of artmaking. Taken collectively, these pieces animate tradition, push the boundaries of abstraction, foreground the experiences of women and girls, and stress the mounting ecological crisis."

Impressionist Legacies: The Michael and Aimee Rusinko Kakos Collection | Fall 2023

"Rarely seen by the public in decades, the Rusinko Kakos Collection features 88 works by 61 artists who worked alongside those whose names are synonymous with Impressionism and the modernist styles that immediately followed but have largely been omitted from art historical surveys. Through an international constellation of friendships, parent-child relationships, marriages, professional associations and academic connections, artists shared ideas, techniques and inspirations that supported the development of their work. Focused on the transformative years between the 1880s through the 1930s, the Collection links the luminaries of Impressionism with their under-recognized contemporaries."

Clothed in Glory: Fr. Vincent de Paul Crosby, O.S.B. | Spring 2023

"Among the foremost designers of religious ritual garments in the United States working today, Fr. Vincent de Paul Crosby, O.S.B., has completed work for Catholic and Protestant congregations for over 45 years. Featuring vestments, wall hangings, sculptures, and recently completed digital works, Clothed in Glory examines the career of a monk-artist committed to igniting spiritual imagination by forging connections between the material and the transcendent."

Untitled by Tara Lamourt

Tara Lamort: The Hoods Series | Spring 2021

"It was Trayvon Martin’s racially-motivated murder in 2012 that spurred artist Tara Lamourt to create a series of portraits imaging her students at St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark, New Jersey. At St. Benedict’s, hoodies are part of the school’s uniform for seniors that doubly recalls the monastic habit worn by the Benedictines of Newark Abbey who sponsor the school. At a time when racist and classist stereotypes continue to motivate acts of violence and murder, Lamourt’s works entreat viewers to recognize the dignity and promise of young men of color."

People of the Book and the Storyboard: Contemporary Jewish Comics and Graphic Novels | Spring 2022

"This exhibition assembles a dozen projects that visually recount stories from the Bible, Rabbinic writings, the Passover Haggadah, and personal biography (principally, first person narratives from the Holocaust) in formats that engage readers of all ages. At a time when storytelling is experiencing renewed resonance, these works were selected for their ability to balance tradition with innovation."

Untitled by Dominick McDuffie

Worship + Work: Photographs by Gordon Parks & Dominick McDuffie | Summer 2022

"While working at Life magazine, Gordon Parks was assigned to document the monks of St. Benedict’s Abbey in Atchison, Kansas, in 1955. Parks’ photo essay, 'A Cloistered Life of Devotion,' offered readers a candid glimpse into American Benedictines at midcentury through depictions of a daily routine marked by periods of prayer, labor, study, recreation and rest. Nearly 70 years later, Pittsburgh-based photographer Dominick McDuffie was commissioned by Saint Vincent to document the quotidian rhythms of America’s oldest Benedictine monastery."

"Drawing for a Carved Wood Panel" by Cosmas Wolf, O.S.B.

With Eyes Uplifted: Br. Cosmas Wolf and Church-Building in 19th century German America | Fall 2022

"Under Br. Cosmas's direction, the Covington Altar Building Stock Company furnished churches throughout the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic infusing a decidedly German aesthetic into the American landscape. Working primarily in German Romanesque and Gothic Revival styles, the Company produced designs that featured pointed archways, highly composed vignettes of figures, steep gables, and delicate ornament. For many a revival of these late-medieval conventions symbolized abiding tradition, permanence, spiritual lineage, and a reverence for craftsmanship over the advancements of industry."

Were You There? Artists Interpret the Way of the Cross | Spring 2021

"By the 17th century, the Way of the Cross had been established as a set of fourteen events charting Christ’s condemnation, journey of suffering, public execution, and burial. Since most Christians were unable to visit Jerusalem to retrace the route themselves, the practice of erecting artistic representations of the stations in churches became popular due to widespread efforts of the Franciscan Order. These works attest not only to a diversity of artistic styles and mediums but the enduring resonances of an embodied spiritual practice.”

"St. Laud Reliquary" by James Malenda

8th Catholic Arts Biennial | Fall 2021

"The 2021 Biennial features 49 artists from across the United States as well as internationally with works completed in nearly all media. In addition to depictions of traditional Christian subjects, artists, regardless of denominational affiliation, were encouraged to submit works that address social concerns from perspectives of faith pertinent to the contemporary moment."

Flora & Fauna: Explorations in Art and Science | Fall 2021

“Both visual inspiration and empirical investigation lend themselves to processes of comparison, portrayal, characterization, and association. Works featured in this exhibition offer us glimpses into how nature, at different times and locale, has served as myth and muse, symbol and specimen.”

Royal Patronage: Selections from the King Ludwig I of Bavaria Gift | 2020

"An exhibition featuring paintings, books, and musical instruments gifted at King Ludwig I's behest to Saint Vincent Archabbey. These items help trace an important link between America’s first Benedictine community and its royal Bavarian benefactor."

Teaching Experience

Exploring Art & Visual Culture (co-taught) | 2025
Senior Exhibition & Professional Seminar | 2019-2024
Senior Studio | 2022
Listen, Look, Tell: An Introduction to the Arts (co-taught) | 2020, 2021 (hybrid)
Drawing I | 2014

Memberships

Arizona Photography Alliance | 2025–Present
Associated Artists of Pittsburgh Member | 2020–2025
Netvvrk Artist Member | April 2022–September 2024
Kansas City Artists Coalition Member | April 2016–August 2019
UMKC Graduate Art History Association Member | Fall 2014–May 2016

Streamers | 2016 | cyanotype | 22 x 90 inches