Autobiography of Hyperrealist Sculptor John DeAndrea

John DeAndrea, an internationally recognized sculptor famous for his eerily lifelike nudes, developed his art while coping with the effects of sexual abuse by a female housekeeper that began at age 6, years of physical abuse by an alcoholic father, and a left arm made useless by childhood polio. "e;Autobiography"e; explains an artist and his art. But the mission closer to DeAndrea's heart is helping men who suffered boyhood trauma but haven't managed to talk about it. DeAndrea tells how he moved from his violent, colorful boyhood on the wrong side of the tracks in Little Italy in Denver, Colorado, to solo exhibitions in New York, Paris, Brussels, and Munich and over 100 group exhibitions worldwide. As a boy, he struggled with Catholic Church-induced guilt for being sexually coerced by the housekeeper. Her warning not to tell began a lifelong habit of secrecy that kept DeAndrea separate from the people around him. As a young man, he suffered debilitating panic attacks that forced him to stay in familiar surroundings, and he missed his first opening in New York. DeAndrea never blames others. He doesn't complain. He doesn't preach, but he urges readers not to dwell on the negative. "e;Autobiography"e; is the story of a boy and the man he became who kept putting one foot in front of the other to achieve both success and love.