Can you tell me a little bit about you?
I’m currently based in Brooklyn NY. Although I’m originally from NY I told myself many years ago that I would never come back. After living overseas in multiple countries for over ten years I decided to come back to NY, since said never. So never say never.
When did you first discover art, or realize you wanted to make it yourself?
I was almost always making art, drawing, playing with legos as a kid. As I grew older I began to take playing music and writing more seriously. Even though I was always painting, I never took it seriously until exhausting so many attempts at having a “career” or a “five-year plan”
What do you like most about working where you do?
I’m in Bushwick, NY. I like the community of artist that I’m surrounded by … and the affordable Mexican food. Yum.
What ideas are you exploring in your practice?
I use to try to put all my experiences and knowledge in to a painting. Now I try to keep my ideas simple and trite. Sometimes there’s an element of humor. By keeping things simple and trite I try to forgo any message in my paintings. Inadvertently a stereotype of an image is explored and an underlying meaning can be discovered.
What is your process like?
I use to be able to work on a single painting for years. Now I try to finish one in a single sitting. A large one may require a few intensive consecutive days. I get a lot of ideas from observing things on my bike ride over to my studio. Or on my bike ride home late at night.
Is there any subject or theme you’ve been particularly interested in lately?
Pizza; triangles are fun to compose with and pizza is omnipresent in NY.
What is the strangest thing you’ve ever had to do for art?
When I needed a job badly one summer I took a job driving a horse and carriage and giving history tours. I had no prior experience with driving a horse carriage.
Do you have a day job or other work that you split your time between?
I survive.
Are you involved in any collaborative or self-organized projects?
I started a curatorial collaborative called JMN artist.
What are you working on right now?
Organizing a Panel Discussion at my solo show on how travel galvanizes creativity.
Anything else you would like to add?
I currently have a solo show entitled Glossolalia, curated by Karen Wilkin, through April 30th, at One Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn NY. It’s almost a mini-retrospective of my career, 42 total works on 16 floors spanning a 13yr period, done in three different countries, eight different cities, and an unbelievable amount of studios. I give tours of the show weekly, feel free to contact me to join.
Find more at jeffreymorabito.com and on Instagram @morabitostudio!
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