Derek Murphy Art Catalogue

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Derek Murphy Art

A catalogue of contemporary oil paintings

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Biography Derek Murphy was born in Portland, Oregon in 1979. His mother (a local artisan) kept him busy

with arts and crafts projects. Derek has always been fascinated with foreign languages and cultures,

great books and painting. In 1996 he spent a year abroad in Argentina as a Rotary Exchange

student, where he learned to dance Tango and play polo. In 1998 he graduated Tigard High School

with a National Art Honor Society Scholarship, and began to travel the world.

Derek studied classics, art history, philosophy and theology at the University of Malta, where he

lived in a 200 year old townhouse with wood furniture, tile floors, a view of the Mediterranean and

an orange grove in the backyard. After displaying his paintings in several local galleries, he moved

to Italy to study classical painting at the Angel Art Academy in Florence. Later, he studied

languages in Barcelona.

For the last 6 years, Derek has been living in Taiwan, painting, writing and – more recently –

finishing a Masters in Foreign Language and Literature.

Publications Seety Magazine (2009)

Taiwan Journal (2007

XPat Magazine (2007)

The Oregonian (2005)

Valletta Post (2001)

Exhibitions Gallery 102, Solo Exhibition, Tainan, Taiwan, 2009

NCKU Art Space, Solo Exhibition, “Absurd Visions”, Tainan, Taiwan, 2009

Chiayi International Artfest, Chiayi, Taiwan, 2007

Lake Oswego Festival of The Arts, Oregon, 2002

Living Enrichment Center, Wilsonville, Oregon, 2002

Art at Bay Street, Sliema, Malta, 2001

The Labyrinth, Valletta, Malta, 2001

The Gallery, Tower Road, Sliema, Malta, 2000

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簡歷

德瑞克‧墨菲 (Derek Murphy)1979 年生于美國奧勒岡州波特蘭市，出生時逢冬至以及星象學所言之預

言星降時刻。德瑞克於 1998 年從當地的泰格德中學畢業。縱然高中時代時常翹課至美術教室繪製壁

畫(作品目前還陳列於母校)，他還是在畢業時榮獲全美藝術榮譽協會獎學金。畢業後他開始環遊世界，

十年以來他停留於美國的時間恐怕還少於十個月。

德瑞克於停留在馬爾他期間開始作畫。那時他佇居於已有兩百年歷史的聯排屋，不僅有古意盎然的原

木傢俱及磚板地，還有橘林及地中海美景為鄰。他在當地的大學完成神學與哲學的課程，並順利於

畫廊展出作品，隨後更前往義大利佛羅倫斯的 Angel Art Academy 學院，學習古典繪畫(那時他的住處

距離著名的聖母百花大教堂僅是一投石之遙)。之後他至巴塞隆納國際語言學校修習了一些課程，並

且也曾為美國波士頓地區一戶外環境課程擔任外燴掌廚。

最近這六年來德瑞克一直在台灣生活、創作、繪畫與寫作，並且近日他也即將完成學業，取得外國語

文學碩士學位。

出版

Seety Magazine (2009)

Taiwan Journal (2007

XPat Magazine (2007)

The Oregonian (2005)

Valletta Post (2001)

展覽

Gallery 102, Solo Exhibition, Tainan, Taiwan, 2009

NCKU Art Space, Solo Exhibition, “Absurd Visions”, Tainan, Taiwan, 2009

Chiayi International Artfest, Chiayi, Taiwan, 2007

Lake Oswego Festival of The Arts, Oregon, 2002

Living Enrichment Center, Wilsonville, Oregon, 2002

Art at Bay Street, Sliema, Malta, 2001

The Labyrinth, Valletta, Malta, 2001

The Gallery, Tower Road, Sliema, Malta, 2000

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What I paint My paintings combine religious symbolism, images from pop culture and human figures in absurd

or shocking compositions, in order to draw out contradictions in social ideology or limitations in

personal belief systems. The best reaction to my paintings is laughter – after the initial confusion

and surprise, when the rational mind shuts down its ability to comprehend and accepts the mystery

or non-meaning of the painting, a spontaneous chuckle at the ridiculousness of the figures is

appropriate.

Why I paint Mainly, I paint because it makes me happy. When a strikingly absurd images collects itself in my

head, the process of developing the raw idea into a very specific painting is both a challenge and

an adventure; I become immersed in the minute to minute challenge of realizing the idea to its

greatest potential (limited only by my artistic ability).

What are your paintings about? From an early age, people absorb very definitive ideas about the universe. They make mental

associations and categorize the relationships between things into an overarching structure of

„reality‟ that is almost never challenged. Those lucky enough to travel extensively (to very foreign

countries) and experience the birth pains of culture shock are in fact going through the process of

expanding or relinquishing their ideological structure. At the same time, there are countless

examples of items in our everyday experience that our minds simply refuse to associate. Things

like religious beliefs, fast food restaurants, technological gadgets and popular media pop up daily in

a synthesized post-modern experience around us, but for all their geographical nearness, we make

no ideological connections between them.

My paintings serve two functions: the first is to break the ideological expectations of the viewer.

Seeing familiar symbols or images – particularly ones with strong emotional responses – mixed

with unfamiliar, base or vulgar scenes or experiences from daily life momentarily breaks the

continuum of assumed beliefs and ideological framework. For a moment, the sky falls, all

connections fail, the mind stutters. It‟s like shutting down a computer or jamming a paperclip into an

electronic circuit. During those briefs moments, where the mind – reaching for familiar ground –

stumbles over its failure to associate, there is an opportunity to see things fresh, in a whole new

way, without our socially-biased reference systems. The second function of my paintings is to draw

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attention to relationship between common experiences that exist but are never cognitively

recognized; symbols are blended and given equal weight, encouraging viewers to reevaluate their

dissociative idiosyncrasies and appreciate the convoluted nuance of globalized society.

Are your paintings blasphemous? While toying with objects of great emotional investment, of course I will not avoid religious

iconography. I was raised Christian, studied Theology in Roman Catholic Europe, and then moved

to the polytheistic and rich spiritual diversity of Taiwan. Due to my experiences and interactions with

members of various faiths, I have an enormous interest and respect for the diversity of religious

practice. I understand why some people, who are uncomfortable with certain images, ask me “Why

do you make paintings that seem to criticize or belittle religious images?” First of all, although it

appears I‟m making a very direct attack on the sanctity of religion – I rarely support my paintings

with a particular ideology; in fact it‟s the lack of ideology which I want to express. However, I cannot

deny that I believe organized religion is too small for the concept of God, and „blasphemy‟ can be a

step towards intellectual freedom

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2009

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One More Cup 在一杯

Oil on Canvas, 20”x24”, 2009

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Bad Omens 凶兆

Oil on Canvas, 46"x36", 2009

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Horny 性飢渴

Oil on Canvas, 46”x36”

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Duck Soup 鴨湯

Oil on Canvas, 46”x36

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Knockers 門環


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Conservation 對話


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Colonialism 狂熱信徒

Oil on Canvas, 46”x3

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Mao 貓


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Holy-day 神聖日


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Orange Juice 柳橙汁


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Rubix Girl 方塊女孩


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Early Works

(1998 – 2008)

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Brown Fields 棕田


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Eucharist 最後晚餐


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Complex 複雜


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Café au lait 咖啡歐蕾

Oil on Canvas, 20"x24"

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Final Markdown 最後出清


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First Communion 初領聖體


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Gesthemene


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Pier Support 諮詢輔導


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Cookies 巧克力餅乾


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Hand Tie 手領帶


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Handwich 手明治


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Happy Meal 快樂兒童餐


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Heart-break 心碎

Oil on Canvas, 46”x36, 2006

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Boy Trouble 男孩麻煩


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Idolatry 偶像崇拜


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Intimacy 親密


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Man Pot 盆中人


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Mary-Doody 傀儡


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Masked 罩面


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Red Girl


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On the Throne 如廁


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Safe Sex 安全’性’


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Engineering 工程


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Sex Dispenser


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Baggage 行囊


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True Love 真愛


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Baggage 行囊


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PORTRAITS

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Portrait “Funky”


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Detail from “One More Cup”

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Portrait “Ting Mei”


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Visit my website for news and current projects

http://www.derekmurphyart.com

http://www.derekmurphyart.com/

Derek Murphy Art Catalogue

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