1992, Todd Murphy studio portrait by Daemon Baizan/DAEMONpictures www.DAEMONpictures.com
1992, Todd Murphy studio portrait by Daemon Baizan/DAEMONpictures www.DAEMONpictures.com
Todd Murphy (1962–2020) American visual artist known for his interdisciplinary practice combining painting, sculpture, photography, and installation. His work explores the human experience, history, myth, memory and the sacred, using composite photography and symbolic iconography. Murphy exhibited widely throughout the United States and abroad and was recognized for his ability to blur boundaries between classical aesthetics and contemporary media.
Biography
Todd Murphy was born in Chicago, Illinois, on July 28, 1962. He studied Art at the University of Georgia in the 1980s. During the 1990s, Murphy gained recognition for his large-scale narrative works integrating sculptural and photographic media.
From 1996 to 2004, Murphy lived and worked in Charlottesville, Virginia. The environment and historical legacy of the region influenced his Sally Hemings series, which examined race, memory, and American identity. Summer of 2000, Murphy’s installed Homage to Sally Hemings atop a coal tower. The work was part of a site-specific exhibition "Hindsight/Fore-site: Art for the New Millennium” at the University of Virginia, twenty-four artists (among them Agnes Denes, Ann Hamilton, Martha Jackson-Jarvis, Michael Mercil, the Monacan Indian Council, Todd Murphy, Dennis Oppenheim, Lincoln Perry, and Lucio Pozzi) created public artworks addressing Thomas Jeffersons legacy "What does Jefferson-the man, his writings and actions-offer to new generations of Americans?"
Murphy returned to Atlanta (2004-2011), he occupied two studios during this time, built a smaller dark room and added large scale industrial printers to his practice, projectors and digital works, experimenting with the evolving photographic technology of the time. He created his first series of large-scale photo composites/ photo montages “fresco” and the “sovereign tree series” calling them paintings, with out paint. His sculptural installations grew and ranged in scale from monumental to miniature. His interest and participation in curatorial and architectural projects expanded.
2011-2020 Todd spent the last decade of his life working from his studio in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Brooklyn, New York, where he continued to explore our interconnectedness, human experience, myth, time, memory, technology and nature.
excerpt from Todd’s last published interview, Forbes magazine, 2016
Adam Lehrer: I do get a somber tone in the work sometimes, do you deal with the concept of mortality in the work?
Todd Murphy: Yes, and my work is beginning to become more machine-like. Which is how we’re going. There are very large questions about god, mortality, and death merging with Artificial Intelligence. It’s not a question of if AI is possible, it’s about when will AI be implemented. There are talks of being able to upload and suspend one’s consciousness infinitely in a computer database.
Adam Lehrer: Do you believe in god?
Todd Murphy: I just think god is love. Something that people from all over the world and history have identified with.
Adam Lehrer: Growing up in Georgia I assume you had religion all around you. Did you grapple with religion at all?
Todd Murphy: I was raised Catholic. Intellectually, trying to wrap my head around AI and eternal existence, I had to ask myself, “What is human?” We are the network. We always have been. Humans are pack animals and we’re becoming networked. We’re problem solving collectively.”
Todd Murphy b. 1962, Chicago, IL. d. 2020 New York, NY. Murphy lived and worked in Brooklyn, NY, Charlottesville, VA and Atlanta, Ga.
==Selected Exhibitions==
2024: Works included in The Collection of Sir Elton John: Goodbye Peachtree Road, public exhibition at Christie’s, NYC (featuring “Floating Man” (1991) and “Welcome to the Beautiful South” (1994)) Todd Murphy Studio – Christie’s NYC Exhibition
2022: Wink (posthumous), Johnson Lowe Gallery, Atlanta
2018: The Ideal Feminine/The Feminine Ideal?, Winston Wächter Fine Art, New York
2017: Art Stage Singapore; VOLTA NYC; Art Central Hong Kong; Art Brussels
2016: Marc Straus Gallery, New York
2010: Jackson Fine Art, Atlanta
2007: MOCA Jacksonville, Florida
2003: Sally Hemings exhibitions, Virginia Historical Society; 1808 Gallery, Richmond Todd Murphy Studio – Sally Hemings Series
2000: Hindsight/Foresight: Art for the New Millennium, Bayly Art Museum, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
2000: Art at the Edge, High Museum of Art, Atlanta
1999: Projector, Virginia Film Festival
1993: Transitional Realities, Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara, California Todd Murphy Studio – Triton Museum Exhibition
1991: McKissick Museum of Art, University of South Carolina, ColumbiaTodd Murphy Studio – McKissick Museum Exhibition
1990–1994: Solo and group exhibitions at Haines Gallery (San Francisco), Robert Kidd Gallery (Michigan), Seoul Arts Center, New Orleans Museum of Art, and others
Press and Publications
2022
Frank, Peter. TODD MURPHY: BREADTH OF A POET, Los Angeles 2022, LINK to Essay
Rodney, Seph. NO MORE RACES TO RUN, New York, New York, 2022, LINK to Essay
2020
Pinto, Samantha: INFAMOUS BODIES Early Black Women’s Celebrity and the Afterlives of Rights. “The Romance Of Consent Sally Hemings, Black Women’s Sexuality, And The Fundamental Vulnerability Of Rights” , 2020, LINK to DUKE University Press; INFAMOUS BODIES
2017
Stehle, Barbara. Todd Murphy, an ongoing voyage. JUGULAR, Issue 1. Jugular, LINK to Essay
2016
Lehrer, Adam. Forbes: At his Solo Exhibition at Marc Straus Gallery, Artist Todd Murphy Creates Discourse through Beauty, October 21, 2016. LINK to Forbes Interview
Rodney, Seph. Hyperallergic: Todd Murphy, Seeing Spectral Visions In Fulsome Skirts LINK to Essay
Murphy, Kate, Art Fuse Todd Murphy, LINK to Essay
2014
Marinozzi, Sol. NYC Artist Portfolio Part Two – Todd Murphy, The Issue Ten, 2014, LINK to Interview
2009
Fox, Catherine. Daring artist bridges genres: Latest exhibit is Murphy’s first effort in digital photography, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, December 20, 2009, p.E1. LINK to Essay
Montieth, Sharon. “Sally Hemings in Visual Culture: A Radical Act of the Imagination?” Public Art, Memorials and Atlantic Slavery , 2009. Routledge LINK to buy Book
2007
Lerner, John. “A Portrait of an Artist” Atlanta Peach, October/ November 2007 LINK to Essay
2004
Leah Stoddard , 30 years at Second Street Gallery LINK to Essay
2003
Hartz, Jill: Siting Jefferson: Contemporary artist Interpret Thomas Jefferson's Legacy LINK to UVA PRESS
Lovett, Ann. Todd Murphy; Southern Modernist, Piedmont Review, April, 2003 LINK to Review
Fox, Catherine. An evolution in Murphy's natural order, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, April 18, 2003, p.Q6 LINK to Review
Feaster, Felicia. Taxonomy Day: Todd Murphy melds art and science at Lowe Gallery, Creative Loafing, April 2003. LINK to Review
SELECTIONS FROM THE ART COUNT PROJECT TODD MURPHY, RICHMOND VA. 2003 LINK
THE ART COUNT PROJECT 1708 GALLERY ANNOUNCEMENT TODD MURPHY LINK
2001
Fox, Catherine. Todd Murphy in a Natural Light, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, March 30, 2001 pp.1I,4-5I LINK to Review
Sherbert, Linda. Star Struck by Todd Murphy, Atlanta Magazine, 2001, LINK to Article
2000
Cochran, Rebecca. TODD MURPHY at the HIGH museum, ART IN AMERICA, 2000 LINK to Review ART IN AMERICA
Fox, Catherine. Atlanta gallery darling flies above limitations, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, March 10, 2000, p. Q8. LINK to Review
Gilbert, Chris. Post-Modernist Style, Southern Gothic Aura, 64 Magazine, Volume 1, Number 10, November 2000, p. 30-34 LINK to Article
McTighe, Monica. Natural Controversy, C-Ville (VA) Weekly, Volume 12, Number 24, C-List, June 13-19, 2000, p. 30. LINK to Review
Stoddard, Leah. Natural Histories: New Work by Todd Murphy, The Second Glance, Volume 12, Number 3/4, Spring/Summer 2000 LINK to Review
University Of Virginia Art Museum. Annual Report 2000-01. University of Virginia Art Museum (Charlottesville) (2000). LINK to Cover Image
PRESS RELEASE NATURAL HISTORIES; NEW WORK BY TODD MURPHY JUNE 2- AUGUST 13, 2000 LINK to PRESS
PRESS RELEASE, ART AT THE EDGE, TODD MURPHY at the HIGH MUSEUM, 2000 LINK to Press Release
Art At The Edge: Todd Murphy’ to Open at The High Museum Feb. 26,
1998
Cullum, Jerry. Todd Murphy, Sculpture, Volume 17, Number 6, July/August: 1998, p. 70-71. LINK to Review
DeSouza, Cedric. Todd Murphy: Kingdom. Phylum. Class. Order. Family. Genus. Radio. Art Papers, Volume 22, No. 3, May/June, 1998, p.40.
Forrest, Jason. Spoiled by success? Talented Todd Murphy succumbs to repetition. The Atlanta Constitution LINK to Review
THE VIRGINIA FILM FESTIVAL AND LIGHT HOUSE FILM PROJECT EXHIBITION PROJECT•OR The Observer, Charlottesville, Va. LINK to Listing
1997
Fox, Catherine. Murphy’s Show of Imagination, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, December 26, 1997 LINK to Review
Sanchez, Brenna. TODD MURPHY Images that speak for themselves, Hour, Detroit, 1997 LINK to Review
Sloan, Cathleen. Murphy’s Proof, C-ville Weekly, 1997 LINK to Review
1996
"Cultured Pearl," Seoul Metropolitan Museum of Art & Seoul Arts Center; Catalog Essay.
Todd Murphy, Transformation Horse, Atlanta Homes & Lifestyle LINK to Review
1995
Hofmann, Regan. Todd Murphy, Poets, Artists § Madmen, July 1995. LINK to Interview
The Collector's Vision, Collection of Peter Spirer Catalog entry Todd Murphy, Kennesaw College, New world 1995 LINK to Review
Baker, Kenneth. Todd Murphy, ARTnews, Volume 94, Number 8, October 1995, 157. LINK to review
Cullum, Jerry, Reinventing symbols can be touchy work, 1995 LINK to Review
Locke, Donald, A WORLD APART Todd Murphy's "The New World" at Fay Gold Gallery, 1995 LINK to Review
Cameron, Dan. New Orleans Triennial, New Orleans Museum of Art, guest curator essay, 1995
1994
Jinkner-Lloyd, Amy. Emphatic Brushwork, Creative Loafing, Volume 4, May 21, 1994. LINK to Article
Mowry, Lisa. Todd's World, Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles, September 1994. LINK to Article
McClure, Virginia. Interview with Todd Murphy, South Art, Atlanta, Volume I, Number I, Nov/Dec 1994, pp. 6-9. LINK to Interview
Fox, Catherine. Connecting the Dots in a Rich Show, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, May 13, 1994, Section A, p. 18. LINK
Sunward, Justin H. New Season, New Art, Gay Chicago Magazine, September 15-25, 1994, p. 39. LINK to Review
Sunward, Justin H. Sleight of the Artistic Hand, Gay Chicago Magazine, September 22- October 2, 1994, p. 4 7. LINK to Review
Swartz, Mark. Post-Poe Modernism, Chicago READER, September 23, 1994, Section I, pp. 33-34. LINK to Review
Smith, Dean. Paintography: Todd Murphy at Haines Gallery, Visions, Winter 1994. LINK to Review
1993
Gerstler, Amy. Todd Murphy at Lowe Gallery, Santa Monica, ARTFORUM, NYC, Volume 31, March 1993, p. 101. LINK to Review
Maclay, Catherine. Some Things Old, New, Assembled and True, Mercury News, San Jose, CA. February 26, 1993, Art Column, p. 29. LINK to Review
McQuaid, Salli. Todd Murphy, Beverly Rayner, Alexis Smith, Artist Writer, March 1993, pp. 1,2,6. LINK to Review
Frank, Peter. Pictures and Variations, Los Angeles, CA, essay for The Lowe Gallery, March 1993. LINK to Review
Flint Institute of Arts. The Purloined Image, Flint Institute of Arts, Flint, MI. 1993
Basher, Jack. “Portfolio”, RAYGUN, 1993 LINK to Review
Currie, Bettie Jo L. Seeking Illumination, Peachtree Papers, Volume 65, No. I, Fall 1993, Cover artist: pp. 14-15 LINK to Review
Owens, Ross. Memories, Dreams, Reflections, March 1993 LINK to Review
Sherman, Ann Elliott. Reality in Flux, Metro, February 1993 LINK to Review
Wirth, Patrice. Different Strokes, Panther(Chapman University, Orange, California), September 13, 1993
Verdict, The Journal of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association, Cover Image. May, June, July 1993.
1992
Jinkner-Lloyd, Amy. Murphy's Law, Creative Loafing, Volume 2, December 2, 1992 LINK to Review
Fox, Catherine. More Style Than Substance, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, December 4, 1992, Section F, p.2 LINK to Review
Dollar, Steve. Peachtree's Pop Icon, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, August 9, 1992.
Coppola, Vincent. Go West, Young Man, Atlanta Magazine, July 1992. LINK To Article
Sanders, Luanne. Warehouse Renaissance, Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles, May/June 1992.
Muchnic, Suzanne. Recessionary Blue Period for Art Dealers, Los Angeles Times, January 27, 1992, pp.F8-9. LINK to Review
1991
Jinkner-Lloyd, Amy. Todd Murphy At Lowe, Art In America, NYC, Volume 79, No. 6, June 1991, pp. 154-55 LINK to Review
Sanders, Luanne. “Roll Models, Creative Loafing, Arts Review, January, 12, 1991 LINK to Review
Cullum, Jerry. Bennett Street Shows Varied "Visions' and "Images,' The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Section C, January 18, 1991, p.10. LINK to Review
Collins, Bradford R. Todd Murphy's Heroic Subjectivism, McKissick Museum Catalog, Columbia, SC, January 13, 1991 LINK to Catalog Essay
Day, Jeffrey. Think Big, The State, Columbia, SC, Section F, January 6, 1991, pp.1,4. LINK to Review
Day, Jeffrey. Murphy Art Hot, Won't Burn Out, The State, Columbia, SC, February 3, 1991 LINK to Review
University of South Carolina. Todd Murphy: Recent Works, Under The Dome McKissick Museum, Columbia, SC, January 1991
1990
Fox, Catherine. “An Artist Confronts his Heroes,” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, June 29, 1990, p. D2.
1989
Perrin, Joseph, "The Art of Todd Murphy," Southern Homes, 1989 LINK to Article
