David McDonough
David McDonough is an artist and educator based in Queens, NY. His abstractions are often suggestive of natural forms, though they elude any singular reading. He works to balance control and spontaneity in processes that cultivate play, improvisation, invention, and transformation. The intensity of the color palette, along with the varied surface textures, create intimate worlds rich with imaginative possibilities and visual discovery. He has shown in solo and group shows in and around the NYC area including recent group shows with PARADICE PALASE, Studio Archive Project, Tappeto Volante Projects, Equity Gallery, and a solo show at One River School in 2020. He has received multiple awards and is a Dedalus Foundation Grant nominee.
“Untitled”, 58 x 42 inches, Acrylic, gouache and sumi ink on canvas, 2022
PP: Walk us through a typical day in your studio or generally through your process to make new work.
DM: Hopefully I walk in with coffee! In an ideal world I will have several works in different stages of the process. The first thing I do when I come in is to spend some time looking, assessing where the work is, and which work needs to change on that day. Sometimes I have very clear ideas about a next move or set of moves for a painting, sometimes I have to really wait and look for a while before it is apparent. Then there are times when it is clear based on my energy, or where I am internally that I will either need to start something new, or chip away slowly at something I have been working on for a longer time. Either way once I start working, intuition takes over and dictates where things go.
If I need to start something new, I make lots of drawings or automatic brush paintings on paper to warm up, then once I have an idea I will start on something more substantial like canvas or clay. Every now and then I will just dive headfirst into a new piece, feel really good about myself at the beginning, and then be terrified once I realize the beginning is over and that was the easiest part.
“Untitled” series, Glass and glaze on ceramics, 2022
PP: What motivates you to make art?
DM: For me it is how I find my own idiosyncratic way of connecting to others. I learn about myself in the process of making art, and at the same time learn about so much more, and so many others who have had similar interests, curiosities, impulses, and desires.
I love learning and discovering new things, and I have found art making to be one giant self-guided research project on life!
PP: Is community something you value in your practice? Why or why not?
DM: Absolutely. This feels like it is all one big conversation, and while many of us work away individually, it is the energy we take into our respective studio spaces from the greater art community that drives the work.
Installation view of paintings and sculptures
PP: What is your favorite medium and why?
DM: Anything that is wet, dry, slippery, sticky, slimy, oozing, runny, viscous, rough, smooth, glistening, grimy, reflective, or matte.
PP: What role do you think artists have in society today? What role should they have?
DM: I think artists have the role of filling in the missing pieces in our society, and this can take many forms. I appreciate art for being a place where a pluralism of ideas can sit under the same umbrella. I heard someone say once, “Art is about an artist doing whatever the ‘F…’ they want,” and I tend to agree. I think once you start to take direction from too many other voices you step outside of art and into another domain or discipline. This doesn’t mean I like all art that does whatever the artist wants (although I like a lot of it). For me, the art I accept and appreciate the most is art that does not look too eagerly for external validation. Art that does not follow a predictable path, or prescribed formula, but is still able to be giving, generous, and humble is what I tend to gravitate toward.
To learn more about David’s work, see his instagram and website.