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Nathan Spoor is an American artist, writer, and art curator. He is known for his acrylic paintings and the popularization of the
Suggestivism Suggestivism is an offshoot of Lowbrow art that invites the viewer to develop their own interpretation of the work, i.e. 'suggestive'. Nathan Spoor entitled a 2011 gallery exhibition "Suggestivism" at CSU Fullerton's Grand Central Art Center in S ...
art movement.


Early career

Spoor graduated from
Abilene Christian University Abilene Christian University (ACU) is a Private university, private Churches of Christ, Christian university in Abilene, Texas. It was founded in 1906 as ''Childers Classical Institute''. ACU is one of the largest private universities in the Sout ...
with a BFA in Painting and Graphic Design, with a minor in Drawing and Illustration. Spoor first began painting in his second year of college. He eventually graduated from the
Savannah College of Art and Design Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) is a private nonprofit art school with locations in Savannah, Georgia; Atlanta, Georgia; and Lacoste, France. Founded in 1978 to provide degrees in programs not yet offered in the southeast of the Unit ...
MFA program, however he took a lengthy break from his thesis work to become a graphic designer, becoming Art Director of his firm after two years. In 2001 he moved from Texas to southern California.


Exhibitions

The first public work by Spoor was a painted mural in the children's museum at the Grace Cultural Center. In 2004 Spoor exhibited in the Six Degrees festival in the loft district of
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, a festival of art exhibitions, DJ sets, live entertainment, drinks, food and vendors within three conjoined warehouses. In 2005 his exhibition at the Shooting Gallery in
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
was featured in ''
SF Weekly ''SF Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper founded in the 1970s in San Francisco, California. It was distributed every Thursday, and was published by the San Francisco Print Media Company. The paper has won national journalism awards, ...
''. His first solo exhibition was shown at the Earl McGrath Gallery in LA, entitled ''The Intimate Parade''. Spoor is a founder of the Deity Group, a marketing and branding agency, and in 2007 he co-founded the Venice Contemporary Art Gallery, for which he served as curator. The gallery exhibited live music, fine art, and technology. He has exhibited at Los Angeles area galleries including Manifest Equality Gallery, Royal/T, CoproGallery, and the J. Flynn Gallery; Rotofugi Gallery in Chicago; galleries like Bold Hype Gallery and AFA NYC in New York City; and Modern Eden Gallery in San Francisco. He was also a part of the ''100 Artists See Satan'' showed at the Grand Central Art Center in 2010. Later that year he held an exhibition entitled ''Full X Moon'' to celebrate the tenth anniversary of his move to Los Angeles. In 2013 Spoor also curated the exhibition ''Kindred'' at the Bold Hype Gallery in NYC. From September through November 2013 Spoor's work was featured alongside 40 others in an exhibition entitled ''Risque '', which he co-curated at the
Long Beach Museum of Art The Long Beach Museum of Art is a museum located on Ocean Boulevard in the Bluff Park neighborhood of Long Beach, California, United States. The museum's permanent collection includes over 4,000 paintings, drawings, sculptures, works on paper, a ...
. According to the ''
Orange County Register ''The Orange County Register'' is a paid daily newspaper published in California. The ''Register'', published in Orange County, California, is owned by the private equity firm Alden Global Capital via its Digital Fiest/Media News subsidiaries. ...
'', "The exhibit features 40 erotic-themed works from contemporary artists of varying skills and prestige from across the nation. The works range in their explicitness, with each featured artist expressing their own idea on canvas of what they consider risqué... The exhibit's opening night party drew nearly double the audience that other exhibits featured at the museum have typically generated, with most garnering a crowd of 300 to 400, organizers said. More than 800 came out for the “Risque” opening party." In 2015 Spoor was a part of an exhibition shown at the Long Beach Museum of Art entitled ''Masterworks: Defining A New Narrative'', which he co-curated as well. The show sent attendance records at the museum.


Suggestivism


Exhibitions

He popularized the term
Suggestivism Suggestivism is an offshoot of Lowbrow art that invites the viewer to develop their own interpretation of the work, i.e. 'suggestive'. Nathan Spoor entitled a 2011 gallery exhibition "Suggestivism" at CSU Fullerton's Grand Central Art Center in S ...
"a new ideal of beauty, or, the ability of an individual to pursue their icpurpose with an amplified understanding and sensitivity" according to the ''
Orange County Register ''The Orange County Register'' is a paid daily newspaper published in California. The ''Register'', published in Orange County, California, is owned by the private equity firm Alden Global Capital via its Digital Fiest/Media News subsidiaries. ...
'', with early representative works of the movement including his 2008 work ''Suddenly''. In 2011 he curated the exhibition ''Suggestivism'' from February to April 2011 at the
CSUF Grand Central Art Center California State University, Fullerton Grand Central Art Center is a partnership between the university and the city of Santa Ana. and is based in the Downtown National Register District Downtown Santa Ana (DTSA), also called Downtown Orang ...
. Spoor took three years to put together the exhibition, which features more than fifty artists. In 2012 he curated the exhibitions ''Suggestivism NYC'', with a total of more than forty artists, at the Bold Hype Gallery in Manhattan. In 2013 Spoor curated a third exhibition, entitled ''Suggestivism'' at the
Acquario Romano The Acquario Romano (''Roman Aquarium'') is situated in Piazza Manfredo Fanti, Rome, Italy. Description Designed by Ettore Bernich and built between 1885 and 1887, the building hosted an aquarium for few years. It was later used as a depot of ...
in
Rome, Italy , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (Romulus and Remus, legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg ...
from May 3 to May 30. Future exhibitions are planned for returns to Los Angeles as well as Rome.


Publications

Spoor authored the book ''Suggestivism: A Comprehensive Survey of Contemporary Artists'' in conjunction with the first Suggestivism exhibition in 2011. The hardcover book featured by full color paintings and reviews of the work and movement. Artists featured in the book include
Chris Mars Chris Mars (born April 26, 1961) is an American painter and musician. He was the percussionist, drummer for the seminal Minneapolis based alternative-rock band The Replacements (band), The Replacements from 1979 to 1990, and later joined the inf ...
, Alex Gross,
Audrey Kawasaki Audrey Kawasaki (born March 31, 1982 in Los Angeles, California"Audrey Kawasaki"
interview ...
,
Jeff Soto Jeff Soto (born June 3, 1975) is an American contemporary artist. His distinct color palette, subject matter and technique have been said to bridge the gap between Pop Surrealism and Street Art. Early life Soto was born in Fullerton, Californi ...
,
Ron English Ron English (born June 6, 1959) is an American contemporary artist who explores brand imagery, street art, and advertising. Career English has produced images on the street, in museums, in movies, books and television. He coined the term POPa ...
, Elizabeth McGrath,
Tara McPherson Tara McPherson (born April 7, 1976, in San Francisco, California) is an American artist based in New York. McPherson creates paintings, murals, poster art, and designer toys, within the New Contemporary Art movement. Biography Tara McPherson s ...
, and
Greg Simkins Greg "Craola" Simkins (born February 28, 1975) is an American artist. Education and early life Greg Simkins was born in Torrance, California, Torrance, California, slightly south of Los Angeles. His artistic ambitions bloomed at age three with d ...
. He has also been a contributor to publications including ''
Juxtapoz Magazine ''Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine'' (pronounced ''JUX-tah-pose'') is a magazine created in 1994 by a group of artists and art collectors including Robert Williams, Fausto Vitello, C.R. Stecyk III (a.k.a. Craig Stecyk), Greg Escalante, and Eric ...
'', ''Hi Fructose Magazine'', and ''Surfer's Journal''.


Media and other projects

In August 2009 Nathan Spoor was featured in the cover of ''Bl!sss Magazine''. Spoor has also worked with the band
Coheed and Cambria Coheed and Cambria are an American progressive rock band from Nyack, New York, formed in 1995. The band consists of Claudio Sanchez (vocals, guitars, keyboards), Travis Stever (guitars, vocals), Josh Eppard (drums, keyboards, backing vocals), an ...
to produce artwork to complement musical projects.


References


External links


Nathan Spoor's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spoor, Nathan American contemporary painters Abilene Christian University alumni Savannah College of Art and Design alumni American art curators Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) 20th-century American painters American male painters 20th-century American male artists