davmo bio






"Self Portrait As An Angry White Man" © 2002


I am an American self taught Artist, Painter. I was born 1960 in Norfolk Virginia. I moved from Virginia and lived with my Grand-parents in Pensacola Florida from 1964-1975. After moving from Florida I lived in Virginia Beach, Virginia from 1975 - 1998.

I moved to Norfolk Virginia in 1998 where I currently reside with my wife and two sons. Some of my other interests include Volkswagens, Downhill Slalom Skateboarding, and Surfing. I am an avid Kneeboard Surfer and I have been surfing the East Coast since 1975.

I began painting in 1994 at the age of 34. In September 2000 I had two paintings chosen to be included into the Biennial 2000 in Virginia. My paintings were selected from 900 works by 300 artists from across the nation. In the Biennial 2000 I won an award for a large scale painting called "The House that Jack Built". My Artwork consisting of Paintings, Drawings, Sculptures, and Fluxus creations can be found in private and corporate collections in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Belgium, France, Italy, Australia, Canada, Japan, and in the U.S.A. from San Fransico to New York City and hundreds of other cities.

About My Art


Original Contemporary Art is what I create. I sell works on paper, wood, and stretched canvases. Some of my work is abstract in nature but some of my work can be categorized as having an tendency towards realism. Much of my work is accented with a direction towards anti art, graffiti, and what I refer to as "decomposition". Although some of my work may seem simple I do base all of my art with solid principles of design and composition. Even though my work is contructed with basic principles of design I still strive to connect my work on a primitive unconscious level that deals with a wide range of emotions, thoughts, or ideas. I like art that makes you think, but I also like art that makes you feel. That is something that I strive for in my work.

Influences


When viewing my art you may see different influences in my work. There are many artists whose work have had some influence in my artistic journey. Many years ago when I was a teenager I saw a Georgio DeChirico painting and after seeing this painting I started looking at other artists work. The year was 1977 and I was about 17 years old. Over the years I read many art history books and visited many Galleries and Museums and viewed both classic paintings by acclaimed artists to viewing art by local artists where I live. This process went on for years. During this time I would do some small drawings, collages, and tried painting but without much result. Many of these early drawings I sold on Ebay or I gave to close friends. It wasn't until 1994 at the age of 34 that I would realize that art would be a real part of my life rather than myself just being a viewer. Some influences : Jonathan Borofsky, Robert Raushenburg, Andy Warhol, Ida Applebroog, Marcel Duchamp, David Wojnarowicz, Anslem Kiefer, Jean Michel-Basquiat, Yoko Ono, Joseph Beuys, all the Fluxus Artists, Folk Artists, all the Dadaist Artists, Grafitti Artists, Mother Nature in how she changes, ages, destroys, and rebirths all things with time. Nothing escapes.

Other influences are music, pop culture, and a load of crap that other people gave me or try to give me and it is expected that I go through life carrying their shit on my shoulders like a pack mule so to speak. Good thing I realized and understood that and opt for something else. Change. Everything.

Affiliations


I am a former member of Alternative Online Artists, also known as "AOA". I have had previous affliations with other art groups such as EBSQ, Tidewater Artists Association, and E.A.T. I was a pioneering member of the art group EBSQ. I was one of the very first artists to be hand selected by John Seed the founder of EBSQ. I am not currently affiliated with any art group. Currently I doing the solo thing and I am flying alone.

The photo above is a self portrait that I did using my Kodak DC240i Digital Camera. I then edited the photo with Adobe Photoshop. The photo is titled "Self Portrait As An Angry White Man". In the photo I am not angry and the photo looks nothing like me. That's the beauty of it in my opinion.