Domingo Zapata

Domingo Zapata is a Spanish artist, writer, and fashion designer. He became a full-time artist in 2002 and sold his first major painting to George Soros in 2005. In 2017, he launched a fashion collection at New York Fashion Week and also published his first novel, The Beautiful Dream of Life.

Domingo Zapata
Born
Palma, Mallorca, Spain
Alma mater
Movement
Writing career
Notable workThe Beautiful Dream of Life
Websitedzapata.com

Early life and education

Zapata is from Palma, Mallorca, Spain. His father was a car painter and his mother was a tailor.[1] In 1993, he moved to London and studied art at the Regent's University London. He then moved to Washington, D.C. where he attended American University and studied contemporary and studio art.[2] Prior to embarking on an art career, Zapata moved to New York City in 1999 and worked in finance and, briefly, in the music industry as a chairman for IMC Records (he is credited as a co-writer on an updated version of the Los del Río song, "Macarena").[3]

Career

In 2002 while Zapata was still working on Wall Street, he began pursuing his hobby of painting. It was at this time one of his paintings of polo horses attracted the attention of contractor Michael Borrico.[3] In 2004, Borrico hosted a private art show at his home that contained some of Zapata's paintings. Businessman, George Soros, attended that event[3] and later purchased Zapata's "Blue Horse" in 2005.

In 2011, Haute Living magazine commissioned Zapata to do the cover art for 24 issues of the magazine.[4] In 2012, Zapata appeared in tabloid headlines after loaning his Porsche to friend, Lindsay Lohan, who was accused of clipping a pedestrian in it.[1] That year, he also created a 35 by 15-foot mural for the Wynwood Walls in Miami.[2] In 2013, 30 of his works were displayed for the Venice Biennale at the Palazzo da Mula. Many of the paintings exhibited were part of Zapata's Mona Lisa series, a collection of pieces featuring Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa in various "disguises."[5][6] In July 2014, Zapata's painting of the crucifixion of Jesus was put on display at the Palma Cathedral.[7]

In 2015, he entered into a licensing agreement with clothing company, Alice + Olivia[8] and collaborated with the footwear brand Superga. Zapata's Superga shoe collection featured 11 styles based on his original paintings.[9] In December of that year, the Cha Cha art gallery in Aspen, Colorado opened as a collaboration between Zapata and Charlotte Lena to showcase Zapata's work.[10]

In 2016, Zapata announced that he had sold a novel to Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. The book was titled The Beautiful Dream of Life.[11] It was published in July 2017.[12][13] In February 2017, Zapata unveiled a clothing collection at New York Fashion Week based on his artwork.[14][15] He also organized other shows at New York Fashion Week[16] and Los Angeles Fashion Week in 2018.[17]

In his most ambitious project to date, the summer of 2019 had Zapata receive an opportunity to paint the largest vinyl mural in the history of New York City.[18] The mural itself is positioned in Times Square, on the East, West and South facades of the One Times Square Building. On each of these three facades, it wraps 15 stories in length, 300 feet in height and covers a total area of 30,000 square feet in total painted surface. The motifs used by Zapata for this work include a retrospective of his prior work including Polo Players, Pandas, Flamenco dancers and Flowers, all influenced by his native Spain and time spent living in NYC. It took more than 4 companion artists working with Zapata more than 3 weeks to complete his work with scaffolding suspension holding the crew over 200–400 feet above NYC during the installation and painting. It will be maintained and featured in Time Square throughout 2019 through the summer of 2020 for all to enjoy.

Style and Persona

Zapata has been referred to as the "next Andy Warhol" for both his pop art sensibilities and his celebrity lifestyle.[3][19][20] He has also been described as a neo-expressionist[14][19] because of his use of bright colors and his "visceral," "graffiti-like" painting method.[2][6] Zapata has noted that he uses color to evoke and represent emotion (usually happiness).[21] Many of his works explore thematic elements such as "sexuality, opulence, and vitality" often incorporating text into the artwork.[22] Zapata often creates different series based on a single theme. These include his Polo series, Matador series,[3] Ten series (portraits of "iconic" women),[1] Mona Lisa series, Panda series, and others.[5][6]

References

  1. Schuster, Dana (October 3, 2012). "Domingo Zapata's brush with fame". New York Post. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  2. Conesa, Kris (September 18, 2012). "Artist Domingo Zapata Falls for Miami". Ocean Drive. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  3. Kurutz, Steven (April 24, 2013). "Domingo Zapata's Best-Known Work May Be Himself". The New York Times. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  4. Delgado, Alexandra (October 20, 2011). "Domingo Zapata Teams Up with Haute Living for a Commissioned Cover Series". Haute Living. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  5. Aguilar, Andrea (May 21, 2013). "Zapata, el conquistador". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  6. "Mosaic at the Venice Biennale Part 3: Domingo Zapata and Koko Mosaico". Mosaic Art Now. June 28, 2013. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  7. "La Catedral exhibe una crucifixión de Domingo Zapata". Diario de Mallorca (in Spanish). July 4, 2014. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  8. Petrarca, Emilia (April 29, 2015). "Art Stars". W Magazine. Retrieved June 2, 2018.
  9. Abel, Katie (October 12, 2015). "Superga, Domingo Zapata Team Up for Collaboration". Footwear News. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  10. Mohr, Ian (December 29, 2015). "Domingo Zapata opens new Aspen art gallery". Page Six. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  11. Freeman, Nate (August 5, 2016). "Domingo Zapata Has Sold a Novel". ARTNews. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  12. "The Beautiful Dream of Life – Kirkus Review". Kirkus Reviews. July 17, 2017. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  13. Jones, Tashara (August 7, 2017). "Domingo Zapata's romantic conquests make for a bestseller". Page Six. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  14. Benson, Juan (March 3, 2017). "Mallorquín Artist Domingo Zapata 'Olés' His Way into Fashion". Forbes. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  15. Street, Mikelle (February 21, 2017). "Domingo Zapata Turned His Art into Clothing For Fashion Week". Vice. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  16. Gomez, Shirley (February 14, 2018). "Domingo Zapata Merged Art, Fashion During NYFW Show 'Be Yourself, Tags Are For Facebook' [PHOTOS]". Latin Times. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  17. Mills, Cristen M. (March 20, 2018). "HoC Art Tuesdays: Domingo Zapata & His "Freedom" Fashion Show for Los Angeles Fashion Week". Heart of Cool. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  18. https://www.latintimes.com/spanish-artist-domingo-zapata-paints-15-story-mural-times-square-largest-new-york-443410%3famp=1
  19. Jenison, David (December 15, 2016). "Why Domingo Zapata Is an Art-World Rock Star". PROHBTD. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  20. Erice Oronez, Manuel (July 2, 2016). "Domingo Zapata, el "Andy Warhol español" vuelve a la soltería". ABC (in Spanish). Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  21. Arriola Cauff, Regina (October 26, 2012). "Color Me Happy – Domingo Zapata". Haute Living. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  22. de Causans, Delphine (April 20, 2012). "Haute Art: Domingo Zapata Or The One Who Runs The Art World". Haute Living. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
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