TRUE
Encyclopedia
TRUE, formerly known as David John Riggins (b.1968, Los Angeles, CA.) is an American artist of German-Russian, African-American, and Blackfoot
descent who lives and works in New York City. He moved to New York in 1991 to study art and child psychology at Sarah Lawrence College
, and then transferred to The Art School of The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art
(BFA, 1996). He began using the word “TRUE” in place of his birth name in the mid-1990s. His work incorporates elements of illustration, character design, computer animation, and graphic design.
He first gained international notoriety for a series of non-permissional site-specific “guerrilla” installations on the streets of Los Angeles and New York City, and in NYC’s subway system (1993–1994), which were done under the pseudonym “str8up” . The impetus for these projects was the belief that the “Art World” was circumscribed and elitist, and that greater meaning could be infused into a work by taking a populist
approach.
While TRUE has generally eschewed the gallery / museum system, his work has been exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA)
, in Brooklyn, NY, and the Centro Cultural de Belém, in Lisbon, Portugal, as part of the Experimentadesign Bienal de Lisboa. He has taught and / or spoken on art, new media, and design at institutions such as The Cooper Union, Parsons School of Design, The Pratt Institute, Rhode Island School of Design, and Sarah Lawrence College.
He has been interviewed and / or had his work featured in All Things Considered (National Public Radio), Arc Design Magazine (Brasil), AREA – a Phaidon design book that named him as one of 100 of the world’s “most innovative emerging graphic designers”, BBC-TV (UK), Crain’s New York Business, Eye Magazine, GalleryBeat (TV), How Magazine, I.D. Magazine – who named him as one of the “I.D. Forty” (40 of the world’s “leading design innovators”), Los Angeles Times, M.A.P. Magazine (Australia), Manhattan File Magazine, Men’s Club Magazine (Japan), Metropolis Magazine – who named him as a “rising star of the new millennium”, New York Magazine, New York Daily News, New York Times, Pix Magazine, Sagmeister: Made You Look, Surface Magazine, Time Out New York, Village Voice, and others. A CD-ROM game for which he did illustration, animation, and UI design won the top award, the “Palm D’Or,” at the MILIA Interactive Conference in Cannes, France.
He has lived in Stuyvesant Heights, Brooklyn
, since 1999, where he has received numerous public art commissions, and co-organizes a free annual children’s film festival called The KIDflix Film Fest of Bed-Stuy
.
Blackfoot
The Blackfoot Confederacy or Niitsítapi is the collective name of three First Nations in Alberta and one Native American tribe in Montana....
descent who lives and works in New York City. He moved to New York in 1991 to study art and child psychology at Sarah Lawrence College
Sarah Lawrence College
Sarah Lawrence College is a private liberal arts college in the United States, and a leader in progressive education since its founding in 1926. Located just 30 minutes north of Midtown Manhattan in southern Westchester County, New York, in the city of Yonkers, this coeducational college offers...
, and then transferred to The Art School of The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art
Cooper Union
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, commonly referred to simply as Cooper Union, is a privately funded college in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States, located at Cooper Square and Astor Place...
(BFA, 1996). He began using the word “TRUE” in place of his birth name in the mid-1990s. His work incorporates elements of illustration, character design, computer animation, and graphic design.
He first gained international notoriety for a series of non-permissional site-specific “guerrilla” installations on the streets of Los Angeles and New York City, and in NYC’s subway system (1993–1994), which were done under the pseudonym “str8up” . The impetus for these projects was the belief that the “Art World” was circumscribed and elitist, and that greater meaning could be infused into a work by taking a populist
Populism
Populism can be defined as an ideology, political philosophy, or type of discourse. Generally, a common theme compares "the people" against "the elite", and urges social and political system changes. It can also be defined as a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social...
approach.
While TRUE has generally eschewed the gallery / museum system, his work has been exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA)
Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts
MoCADA, or the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts, is a museum of contemporary art in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is the first museum of its kind to be opened in New York. Its mission is to foster a greater awareness and appreciation of the arts and cultures of the African...
, in Brooklyn, NY, and the Centro Cultural de Belém, in Lisbon, Portugal, as part of the Experimentadesign Bienal de Lisboa. He has taught and / or spoken on art, new media, and design at institutions such as The Cooper Union, Parsons School of Design, The Pratt Institute, Rhode Island School of Design, and Sarah Lawrence College.
He has been interviewed and / or had his work featured in All Things Considered (National Public Radio), Arc Design Magazine (Brasil), AREA – a Phaidon design book that named him as one of 100 of the world’s “most innovative emerging graphic designers”, BBC-TV (UK), Crain’s New York Business, Eye Magazine, GalleryBeat (TV), How Magazine, I.D. Magazine – who named him as one of the “I.D. Forty” (40 of the world’s “leading design innovators”), Los Angeles Times, M.A.P. Magazine (Australia), Manhattan File Magazine, Men’s Club Magazine (Japan), Metropolis Magazine – who named him as a “rising star of the new millennium”, New York Magazine, New York Daily News, New York Times, Pix Magazine, Sagmeister: Made You Look, Surface Magazine, Time Out New York, Village Voice, and others. A CD-ROM game for which he did illustration, animation, and UI design won the top award, the “Palm D’Or,” at the MILIA Interactive Conference in Cannes, France.
He has lived in Stuyvesant Heights, Brooklyn
Stuyvesant Heights, Brooklyn
Stuyvesant Heights is a neighborhood in north-central Brooklyn, a part of settled in the mid-17th century before the borough of Brooklyn was incorporated as a city...
, since 1999, where he has received numerous public art commissions, and co-organizes a free annual children’s film festival called The KIDflix Film Fest of Bed-Stuy
The KIDflix Film Fest of Bed-Stuy
The KIDflix Film Fest of Bed-Stuy is a free annual film festival for kids and their families organized by the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts . It has taken place in the Stuyvesant Heights section of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York, since 2000, and is now preparing for its 12th...
.
External links
- http://www.TRUEart.biz TRUE's commercial art portfolio