ABOUT THE ARTIST
Vaughn Spann devotes his practice to abstraction and figuration as an investigation into space, time, and memory. He locates subjects from deeply personal spaces as he reconciles with his body within and out of the studio. With a deep admiration for formalism, he enjoys approaching paintings through the lens of color, line, and shape, but seemingly understands that one’s subjectivity can’t simply be divorced from the studio. For him, a form is a striking means of generating content in ways that are compelling. His formal investigation permeates throughout his paintings, symbolically reflecting his encounters with diverse people and places. Through his well-known stylistic separations, Spann continues to vigorously experiment with unconventional materials and expands on his personal and historical narratives.
– Almine Rech Gallery
Situated at the precipice between personal and collective experience, Vaughn Spann produces distinctly textured paintings and sculptures where form gives way to feeling. He incorporates visual and tactile references throughout his work which elicit a tension between abstraction and figuration. The artist’s works point towards a cycle of art, politics, and personal experience as the inseparable and mutually co-created elements of contemporary existence. Spann’s bodies of work mine the histories of art, activism, and the discourses of social practice to reflect upon their inextricable relationships.
Vaughn Spann received his BFA from Rutgers University (2014) and his MFA from Yale University (2018). Spann’s work has been exhibited at the Newark Museum, Reginald Lewis Museum in Baltimore, Perez Art Museum Miami, and the Rubell Museum. Recent press includes Artnet, Blouin Artinfo, ARTnews, The New York Times, Bloomberg, Galerie Magazine, Vice, and W Magazine. Spann’s works are part of major contemporary art collections including public collections such as the High Museum of Art (Atlanta) and Perez Art Museum Miami. Recent exhibitions include “Scorched Earth and The Weeping Sun” at Takashi Murakami’s Kaikai Kiki Gallery, Tokyo. Among his awards is an Alice Kimball traveling fellowship (2017) and among his residencies is NXTHVN in New Haven, CT.
– David Castillo Gallery
