Artist Biob. 1979, Los AngelesMichael Azgour is a contemporary figurative artist whose paintings contemplate the space between perception and reality, peering into our reliance on imagery – such as those used in mass media, advertising, and social media – as factual representations despite their fallibility to deliver the truth. A Native of California, he is known for large, expressive compositions which combine multi-layered and divergent painting styles, such as painterly figuration and geometric abstraction. Azgour’s award-winning paintings have been exhibited in galleries and museums in the United States, Europe, and Asia, such as solo shows at the Art Museum of Los Gatos, CA and Hohmann Fine Art in Palm Desert, CA, as well as art fairs such as SCOPE NYC, Los Angeles Art Show, and Seattle Art Fair. Michael has an upcoming solo exhibition at the Fresno Art Museum. His work is part of renowned collections around the world, including the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford University. Michael has exhibited alongside a number of highly respected artists and regularly delivers artist presentations, workshops, and panels, including recently at TEDx Krakow. Michael teaches drawing and painting courses at Stanford University. “Azgour’s works are expressive and geometric abstractions informed by an involved process that combines a strategic, realistic technique with pattern and repetition and the muse of accidental surprise. His figures seemingly float with one foot firmly planted in the present while the other wafts into the past. Paint becomes pixel, blur or distortion mirroring the disconnected snapshots and video clips that populate our social media profiles. He challenges the viewer’s interpretation by combining unrelated imagery in the same composition. Although the disparate visuals and juxtaposed compositions appear random, they are in fact bits of narrative from the artist’s own life and travels.” – K Nichols Artist’s Statement In a world where facts are disputed, virtual experiences are convincingly real, and social media influencers sell contrived realities, I’m interested in the ambiguous space between fact and fiction. My paintings address the subjectivity of perceived truths, the psychological impact of excessive exposure to visual stimuli, and the function of painting in a historical context. Representational painting has for ages been a reflection of how artists see the world, and in turn, a function of the time and place in which the works were created. With the prevalence of the internet—and social media in particular—participants can ‘travel’ to vast destinations with a host of companions. With the absence of a personal memory, however, the experience is as shallow as it is broad. I juxtapose seemingly unrelated imagery and paint application methods as a way to exemplify the discontinuity of social interaction in the face of digital culture and to speak to the nature of painting in a historical context.While studying Psychology at UC San Diego, I became fascinated with the mechanisms of perception, namely our ability to understand and form meaningful relationships with what we see. Contemporary digital media—such as photography, animation, and virtual reality—is so lifelike that it has the ability to evoke similar psychological responses. However, by removing context, distorting imagery, and rushing the viewing process (think social media), our perceptions are based on an abstract representation of reality. I combine realistic and abstract elements in my work in order to exemplify the distinction between the real and the contrived.Transparency and masking techniques reveal multiple layers of paint and direct viewers to the abstract building blocks of the piece, illuminating the artmaking process as a subject in itself. By visualizing the formation of the piece and inserting one’s own meaning, the viewer’s engagement is an essential part of each painting and their interaction brings the work to completion. Curriculum Vitae EDUCATION 2005 MFA, Studio Art: Painting, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, CA2001 BA, Psychology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, Minor in Chemistry SOLO EXHIBITIONS (selected) 2021 Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA (upcoming) Gallery MAR Carmel, Carmel, CA2020 SCOPE New York, Solo Show, Represented by Claire Carino Contemporary, Boston, MA Perceptualism, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Ocean’s Edge, Gallery MAR Carmel, Carmel, CA 2019 Pixels, Muriel Guépin Gallery, SoHo, New York, NY Perceptualism, GF Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM Slate Contemporary, Oakland, CA (two-person)2018 Blurring the Lines, Slate Contemporary, Oakland, CA (two-person) 2017 Velocity, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA (catalogue) New Paintings, Gold Gallery, Boston, MA (two-person)2016 Velocity, Małopolski Ogród Sztuki (MOS) Art Museum, Krakow, Poland 2015 Modern Artefact, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA (catalogue) 2014 Racers, Blue Contemporary, Cambridge, UK2013 Robert Green Fine Arts, Mill Valley, CA (two-person) 2012 Reoccurring Patterns, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA (catalogue)2011 Metamorphosis, Los Gatos Art Museum (renamed New Museum of Los Gatos), Los Gatos, CA 2009 Recent Paintings, William Merrill Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA Moments of Impermanence, Caldwell Snyder Gallery, San Francisco, CA (two-person) College of Marin, Emeritus Center, Kentfield, CA2008 Awakening, William Merrill Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA 2007 Sharp Gallery, San Diego, CA 2006 MFA Final Exhibition, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, CA GROUP EXHIBITIONS (selected) 2022 Art Karlsruhe Art Fair, Karlsruhe, Germany, Represented by Brennecke Fine Art, Berlin, Germany 2021 International Biennial Portrait Competition, Wausau Museum of Cont. Art, Wausau, WI (Juried Show) Artist Statement #6, CICA Museum, Gimpo, South Korea (Juried Show) 34th September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA (Juried Show) Sixpack, Brennecke Fine Art, Berlin, Germany Art Market San Francisco, Represented by Muriel Guépin Gallery, SoHo, New York, NY (upcoming) All Figured Out!, Muriel Guépin Gallery, SoHo, New York, NY 2020 Better Together, Slate Contemporary, Oakland, CA Art Palm Springs, Represented by Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Figures in Space, Slate Contemporary, Oakland, CA Play, Slate Contemporary, Oakland, CA 2019 Seattle Art Fair, Represented by Muriel Guépin Gallery, SoHo, New York, NY 5th ‘Enter into Art’ Traveling Exhibition, Cologne Cultural Center, Cologne, Germany (Juried Show) 5th ‘Enter into Art’ Traveling Exhibition, Bonn City Library, Bonn, Germany (Juried Show) Featured Artist, Claire Carino Contemporary, Boston, MA Oakland Art Murmur, Slate Contemporary, Oakland, CA Featured Artist, GF Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA 2018 Salon at the Triton: 2D Art Competition & Exhibition, Triton Museum, Santa Clara, CA (Juried Show) Summer 2018, Claire Carino Contemporary, Boston, MA Whitney Modern, Los Gatos, CA Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Featured Artist, GF Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM Slate Contemporary, Oakland, CA 2017 Abstracts from Life: Bay Area Figurative Past & Present, New Museum of Los Gatos, Los Gatos, CA (Juried Show; Exhibiting with Joan Brown, Richard Diebenkorn, Nathan Oliveira, Terry St. John, et al.) Art Palm Springs, Represented by Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Summer Exhibition, GF Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM Claire Carino Contemporary, Boston, MA Slate Contemporary, Oakland, CA Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA 2016 Morris Graves Museum of Art, Eureka, CA (Juried Show) Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Bluestone Fine Art, Philadelphia, PA Claire Carino Contemporary, Boston, MA Blue Contemporary, Cambridge, England 2015 Art Silicon Valley Art Fair, Represented by Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA) Art Palm Springs, Represented by Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Blue Contemporary, Cambridge, England Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Bluestone Fine Art, Philadelphia, PA Allison McCrady Fine Art, Orinda, CA J GO Gallery, Park City, UT 2014 International Art Festival, Highline Loft Gallery, Chelsea, New York City, NY (Juried Show) Art Palm Springs, Represented by Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Than Mór Art Museum, Malom Gallery, Nyíracsád, Hungary Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA J GO Gallery, Park City, UT Allison McCrady Fine Art, Orinda, CA Bluestone Fine Art, Philadelphia, PA Blue Contemporary, Cambridge, England Ride to Cambridge, Cambridge Contemporary Art Gallery, Cambridge, UK (Juried Show) 2013 Men, Linus Gallery, Pasadena, CA (Juried Show) Art Palm Springs, Represented by Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Cambridge City Art Fair, Represented by Blue Contemporary, Cambridge, UK) Bluestone Fine Art, Philadelphia, PA Blue Contemporary, Cambridge, England Divan Gallery, Brussels, Belgium 2012 Los Angeles Art Show, Represented by Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA) Lyrical Vision Beat Generation & Beyond, John Natsoulas Gallery, Davis, CA (Exhibiting with Dennis Hare, James Weeks, Jennifer Pochinski, Elmer Bischoff, et al.) Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA William Merrill Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA 49th Annual Juried Exhibition Masur Museum of Art, , Monroe, LA (Juried Show, Awarded ‘3rd Place’) McNabb Martin Contemporary Art, San Diego, CA Art Market San Francisco, Represented by Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA 2011 Fourth National Juried Exhibition, Prince Street Gallery, New York City, NY (Juried Show) Art Market San Francisco, Represented by K Imperial Fine Art, San Francisco, CA William Merrill Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Bryant Street Gallery, Palo Alto, CA Artist Council Fundraiser, Palm Springs Art Museum, Palm Springs, CA K Imperial Fine Art, San Francisco, CA 2010 Gateway to Imagination: National Competition, Farmington Museum, Farmington, NM (Juried Show) William Merrill Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA Gallery Artists, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA Painting Only, Pacific Art League, Palo Alto, CA (Juried Show) Rive Gauche Art Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ 2009 Hearts in San Francisco: Public Exhibition, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, CA Hearts in San Francisco: Heroes & Hearts, Union Square, San Francisco, CA Caldwell Snyder Gallery, San Francisco, CA William Merrill Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA 2008 Expo 27, BJ Spoke Gallery, Huntington, NY, (Juror: Marjorie Weinstein, Whitney Museum, NYC) 20th Street Art Gallery, Sacramento, CA Of Eve, Pacific Art League, Palo Alto, CA William Merrill Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA 2007 Mixed Messages, Artwork SF Gallery, San Francisco, CA (Juried Show, Awarded ‘Best in Show’) 3rd Annual Painting, Drawing & Printmaking Competition, Palm Beach College, Lake Worth, FL Brick to Blue, Space Gallery, San Francisco, CA Grand Opening Exhibition, Issa Gallery, Houma, LA Nondescript, 111 Minna Gallery, San Francisco, CA (Juried Show) 2006 A.G. Gallery, Krakow, Poland Signatura Gallery, Krakow, Poland 20th Street Art Gallery, Sacramento, CA 2005 Works on Paper, Long Beach Arts, Long Beach, CA (Juror: Ruth Weisberg, Dean of Fine Arts, USC) PUBLIC ART PROJECTS, COLLECTIONS (selected) ABI Mastermind, Sacramento, CA Aviation Capital Group, Newport Beach, CA Hotel Union Square, San Francisco, CA Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, Stanford University, Stanford, CA Lyon’s Gate Entertainment, Los Angeles, CA National Cooperative Bank (NCB), Arlington, VA Stanley S. Langendorf Foundation, San Francisco, CA Taylor Art Collection, Denver, CA UC Davis Medical Center, Sacramento, CA Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Sculpture installation for six months, San Francisco, CA AWARDS, GRANTS 2019, 20 Arts Catalyst Grant, Stanford University, Stanford, CA2012 Third Place, Masur Museum of Art, 49th Annual Juried Exhibition, Monroe, LA2009 Teacher of the Year, Pacific Art League2007 Best in Show, Artwork SF Gallery, Mixed Messages, San Francisco, CA BIBLIOGRAPHY (selected) 2020 Wild Roof Journal, three image reproductions, New York, Issue 5, Nov.2019 DeWitt Cheng, “Abstract Realism,” East Bay Express, Oakland, CA, Sep. Sarah Eddy, “Michael Azgour: Perceptualism,” Santa Fean Magazine, Santa Fe, NM, vol. 47, no. 4 (Aug/Sep): 64. “Le Pont Mirabeau,” Kunstretreat: Faszination weltweiter Kunst, Farbe und Meditation. Königswinter, Germany. 27. 2018 Southwest Art Magazine, Exhibition announcement with image, Golden, CO, vol. 48, no 6 (Nov): 41. Kim Agricola, “Michael Azgour: Digging Deep,” Southwest Art Magazine, Golden, CO, vol. 48, no. 7. 91. (Dec): 91. Aaron Carnes, “Blurring the Lines,” East Bay Express, Oakland, CA, Feb.2017 Michael Azgour: Velocity, Exhibition Catalogue, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA, Jan.2016 “Michael Azgour,” Fresh Paint Magazine, London, UK, Issue 13 (Jun): 40-41. 2015 Michael Azgour: Modern Artefact, Exhibition Catalogue, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA, Jan.2014 Residence Magazine, Image reproduction, London, UK, Spring/Summer. 39. “Arts & Culture,” Cambridge Magazine, Exhibition announcement with image, Cambridge, UK, Feb. Continuing Studies Catalogue, Stanford University, 19 image reproductions, Stanford, CA, Summer.2013 “Michael Azgour,” Studio Visit Magazine, Boston, MA, vol. 21: 12-13.2012 Michael Azgour, Exhibition Catalogue, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA, Sep.2011 Continuing Studies Catalogue, Stanford University, 18 image reproductions, Stanford, CA, Summer.2010 “The Art of the Best of San Francisco,” San Francisco Weekly, Image reproduction, San Francisco, CA, vol. 29, no17: 22.2009 San Francisco Chronicle, Image reproduction, San Francisco, CA, Feb 8. R-35.2007 “Summer,” ARTnews Magazine, Image reproduction, New York, NY. 219. TEACHING EXPERIENCE (selected) 2012-Present Lecturer, Architectural Design, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 2010-Present Instructor, Continuing Studies, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 2010-11 Lecturer, Symbolic Systems, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 2010-14 Lecturer, Foundations and Graphic & Web Design, Art Institute of California, Sunnyvale, CA 2007-09 Directed Studies Advisor and Review Committee Member, Graduate School of Fine Arts, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, CA 2013-15 Instructor, San Francisco Art Institute, Public Education, San Francisco, CA 2008-14 Instructor, College of Marin, Community Education, Kentfield, CA EXHIBITIONS CURATED (selected) 2019, 20 Stanford University, Painting: Architecture in the Environment, Course Exhibition, Stanford, CA2015 Stanford University, Architectural History & Drawing in Europe, Course Exhibition, Stanford, CA2006 Bazaar Café, Twelve Monthly Exhibitions, San Francisco, CA2001 University of California San Diego, New Moon Exhibition, La Jolla, CA EXHIBITIONS & AWARDS JURIED (selected) 2018-20 Artist Award for a Distinguished Body of Work, Three-year appointment, College Art Association (CAA), New York, NY2018 Pacific Art League, Abstraction, Palo Alto, CA 2016 Marin Society of Artists, National Show, San Rafael, CA2012 Fairbanks Arts Association, 27th Annual 64th Parallel Art Exhibition, Fairbanks, AK2010 Pacific Art League, Figures & Faces, Palo Alto, CA2009 Las Positas College, 31st Annual Spring Art Festival, Livermore, CA Pacific Art League, In the Garden, Palo Alto, CA GUEST LECTURES, WORKSHOPS, CRITIQUES (selected) 2022 Presentation, TBD, Professional Photographers of America (PPA), Imaging USA Conference, National Harbor, MD, January 17 (upcoming). 2021 Guest Artist: Lectures/Presentations and Undergraduate Critiques, The American University of Rome, Rome, Italy (upcoming). Workshop, “Building a Sustainable Career as an Artist,” Professional Photographers of America (PPA), Imaging USA Conference, Atlanta, GA, January 16. 2020 Workshop/Live Painting, Gallery MAR, Carmel, CA, January 24. Workshop, “Building a Sustainable Career as an Artist,” College Art Association (CAA), 108th Annual Conference, Chicago, IL, February 13. Intersession Course, Introduction to Drawing: Buildings in the Environment, Nueva High School, San Mateo, CA, January 8-10. 2019 Panel Lecture, “Art Entrepreneurship: Art School as a Foundation to a Sustainable Career,” Teaching art entrepreneurship as a new paradigm for the 21st century art schools, College Art Association (CAA) 107th Annual Conference, New York, NY, February 15. Lecture/Presentation, “Concept and Process,” Northeastern University, Boston, MA, February 21. 2018 Workshop, “Building Relationships with Galleries for Artists,” College Art Association (CAA) 106th Annual Conference, Los Angeles, CA, February 23. Lecture/Presentation, “Concept and Process,” Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA, October 3. 2017 Lecture/Presentation, “Capturing Change: How Unfinished Artworks Invite Active Viewers,” Turning Point, TEDx Krakow, Mangha Art Museum, Krakow, Poland, October 28. Lecture/Presentation, “Professional Practices for Fine Artists,” Jan Matejko Academy of Fine Arts, Krakow, Poland, June 6. Workshop/Live Painting, Hohmann Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA, January 14. 2012 Lecture/Presentation, “Art and Inspiration,” 27th Annual 64th Parallel juried exhibition,Fairbanks Arts Association, Fairbanks, AK, October.