People who think outside the box tend to find me. I definitely don’t attract purists. The base of the art world is secretly very conservative. They prefer things that remind them of previously digested or canonised art historical movements. There’s a safety in that that I don’t really play to.
Featured Image: Racetrack Playa. Shulamit Nazarian.
Please tell us a little about yourself. What brought you to the world of art?
Probably sounds cliché, but I was that kid who always made stuff and never really wanted to do anything else. But I didn’t know there was such a thing as the “art world” until I went to college. I had never even been to an art museum! I went to school thinking I’d become a graphic artist and came out making sculpture.
How do you describe yourself in the context of challenging people’s perspectives via your work and art?
I believe in making whatever you want no matter what anyone says or if it will sell or be shown or end up anywhere.
How do you deal with the conceptual difficulty and uncertainty of creating new work?
I try not to overthink it.
Armory.
Let’s talk about the evolution of your practice over the years. Tell us about your commitment to your current medium. What would you call your style?
I guess I’m known mostly as a painter, although I started painting on my own before I went to grad school and never had a proper painting class.
Let’s talk about your frameworks, references and process. What inspires you?
I’m inspired by everything – city life, fashion, pop culture, politics… so on. My ethos is to follow the work wherever it takes me and not to get in my own way.
Let’s talk about your artistic journey. What were your biggest lessons and hiccups along the way?
I’m pretty sure they are still happening haha! The tide is always shifting, that’s why it’s so important to be true to yourself above all else. Protect your mental space.
How does your audience interact and react to your work?
People who think outside the box tend to find me. I definitely don’t attract purists. The base of the art world is secretly very conservative. They prefer things that remind them of previously digested or canonised art historical movements. There’s a safety in that that I don’t really play to.
What are you looking for when you look at other artists’ work?
I look for originality.
Think of the biggest professional risk you have taken. What helped you take that risk?
My first show opened when the market crashed in 2008. I made 16-foot paintings for it. It was a huge risk but set the tone. I have tried to never be fearful of the audience or the market because real art exists far outside of those parameters.
Installation view. Untitled Miami 2019. Shulamit Nazarian.
What is the best piece of advice you have received? Why was it helpful?
My grad school professor, Tom Nozkowski, told me to only make work for my own generation. It really helps not to worry about pleasing people who don’t share your experience in the first place. You have to tap into your real, accumulated experience. I think we waste a lot of time lying to ourselves about what we are really interested in. Nozkowski’s words helped me get to a place where I was communicating more personally and honestly.
Tell us about your studio? Could you describe your usual work day in the studio?
I don’t organise and label my paints. I build my own stretchers. I don’t have a separate spray room or woodworking area and I think I have a natural aversion to professionalising the studio or making it too homey. Also, there’s dust everywhere because I spray. So, even a coffee maker can’t coexist in my space. I’d say my typical day is four to five hours of work.
Are you more of a studio artist or naturally collaborative by nature? How do you feel about commissions?
I am so not naturally collaborative. I can collaborate on other stuff, but not the making of art. I’m a Capricorn.
What are you working on now? What’s coming next season?
I have an upcoming solo museum show opening on April 5 at Museum Goch in Germany (postponed until 2021 due to COVID-19). After that I’m doing a three-person show with Julia Wachtel and Paul Pfeiffer at Library Street Collective in Detroit.
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