Mark Maggiori (born June 16, 1977) is a French-American painter,

graphic design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art whose activity consists in projecting visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdiscipli ...

er,

draftsman A drafter (also draughtsman / draughtswoman in British and Commonwealth English, draftsman / draftswoman or drafting technician in American and Canadian English) is an engineering technician who makes detailed technical drawings or plans for m ...

, musician,

music video director A music video director is the head of music video production. The director conceives of videos' artistic and dramatic aspects while instructing the musical act, technical crew, actors, models, and dancers. They may or may not be in collaboration ...

and lead vocalist of the

nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, sometimes called aggro-metal) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, alternative rock, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu met ...

band

Pleymo Pleymo is a French nu metal band formed by Mark Maggiori, Benoît Julliard, Fred Ceraudo, and Mathias Borronquet in Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in ...

. He is noted for paintings of American cowboys, Native Americans and the

American Southwest The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, N ...

Early life and education

Maggiori was born in

Fontainebleau Fontainebleau (; ) is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the ''arrondissement ...

, in 1977. At the age of 15, during his first visit to the United States, Maggiori went on a month-long road trip from New York City to San Francisco and visited several National Parks and other sites in the Southwestern United States. He later cited that trip as the beginning of his fascination with the Southwest and the inspiration behind his Western art. Maggiori graduated from the Académie Julian in Paris, where he was formally trained in academic drawing.

Music

From 1997 to 2007, Maggiori served as the lead vocalist, graphic designer, and music video director for his band, Pleymo. After signing with

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

the band released four studio albums and toured internationally. Pleymo went on a hiatus after 2007, but reunited in 2018 with Maggiori once again providing lead vocals. After the reunion tour announcement for the Paris concert the band had sold out

Le Trianon Le Trianon is a theatre and concert hall in Paris. It is located at 80, boulevard de Rochechouart, in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, at the foot of the hill of Montmartre. Café concert (1894–1900) The ''Trianon-Concert'' was built as a ''c ...

in Paris in less than a day.

Fine art

Maggiori began painting Western scenes in 2014. Since then, his works have been featured in ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

'', ''

Flaunt ''Flaunt'' is an American fashion and culture magazine based in Hollywood, Los Angeles, with an office in New York. History The magazine was founded in 1998 by the current C.E.O. Luis Barajas, and Creative Director Jim Turner, who had previous ...

'', '' Art of the West'', ''

Southwest Art ''Southwest Art'' is a magazine published by Peak Media Properties that specializes in fine art depicting art of the American Southwest. History and profile ''Southwest Art'' was first published in May 1971. Initially, the magazine was based in ...

'', ''

Western Horseman ''Western Horseman'', a monthly magazine published by the magazine division of Morris Communications, was first published in January 1936. It features articles on Western riding, the breeding and care of horses, horse training and tack, and ranchin ...

'' and others. Maggiori has been noted in particular for the way he paints

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s in his landscape scenes, with Christopher Barker describing them as, "layered, textural monuments that both dwarf and magnify the subject with impossible detail." In addition to published features, Maggiori'is paintings have been exhibited in the Briscoe Western Art Museum in

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, the

Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art The Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art is an art museum in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The Eiteljorg houses an extensive collection of visual arts by indigenous peoples of the Americas as well as Western Ame ...

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

, the

Autry Museum of the American West The Autry Museum of the American West is a museum in Los Angeles, California, dedicated to exploring an inclusive history of the American West. Founded in 1988, the museum presents a wide range of exhibitions and public programs, including le ...

and the Maxwell Alexander Gallery in Los Angeles. Beginning in 2017, he began to work ''

en plein air ''En plein air'' (; French for 'outdoors'), or ''plein air'' painting, is the act of painting outdoors. This method contrasts with studio painting or academic rules that might create a predetermined look. The theory of 'En plein air' painting ...

'' in New Mexico, Arizona and Wyoming. Maggiori's style and technique has drawn comparisons to Western artists

Frederic Remington Frederic Sackrider Remington (October 4, 1861 – December 26, 1909) was an American painter, illustrator, sculptor, and writer who specialized in the genre of Western American Art. His works are known for depicting the Western United State ...

and

Frank Tenney Johnson Frank Tenney Johnson (June 26, 1874 – January 1, 1939) was a painter of the Old American West, and he popularized a style of painting cowboys which became known as "The Johnson Moonlight Technique". ''Somewhere on the Range'' is an examp ...

. Gallery owner Beau Alexander has noted that Maggiori's paintings are unique because of his outside perspective, having not grown up in the culture of the West and that " egoes to great lengths to have the cowboys depicted accurately...he will use colors and techniques learned in his photo and film days to create a more dramatic scene."

References

External links

;Paintings *
The Monsoon Sun
' (2016 William B. Travis Awards for Patrons Choice) *
The Journey West
' (2017 Sam Houston Awards for Best Painting) *
West Side of the Rio Grande
' (2018 Don B. Huntley Spirit of the West Award) *
Purple Haze
' (2019 Don B. Huntley Spirit of the West Award) {{DEFAULTSORT:Maggiori, Mark 1977 births Artists of the American West People from Fontainebleau Académie Julian alumni 21st-century French painters 21st-century French male artists Living people