Biography

As a child, I remember cutting up paper in my father’s study.  I remember gluing shapes together in my first attempts at collage.  I was mesmerized.  I remember art classes in grade school, expressing myself as only a child can, and even then I recall a feeling of intoxication.  The drawn line, the mark, the stroke, contained millions of tiny vibrations.  They traveled through me.
    At Kenyon College I reawakened these childhood memories during a photography class.  As my work was being critiqued, I realized that the images I took could hold tremendous meaning.  I felt the possibilities, and recaptured the feelings I had when I was a boy.   I knew then that I wanted to continue on an artistic path, and cultivate whatever those feelings were.
    Upon graduation, I traveled to New York City with my photography portfolio, hoping to find work.  I went to a photography exhibit at MOMA (Mirrors and Windows), and contacted all the photographers whose work inspired me.  I ended up meeting great photographers like Lucas Samaras and Irving Penn.  I was hired by Tetsu Okuhara, a Japanese-American photographer, and worked for him as a freelance assistant.  I also began doing some production work on television commercials.   
    A short time later, I was living in the East Village.  I was surrounded by brilliant creators, and I was right in the middle of a burgeoning art scene, with Patti Astors’ Fun Gallery which showed the work of Kenny Scharf, and Gracie Mansion who showed the work of Keith Haring.  My finger was on the artistic pulse, and I drew lots of inspiration from the city.
    I found that my images fit best in a cinematic world, and so I began to seek work on films.  My venture into that world led me to work under Martin Scorsese as a personal/production assistant on the film After Hours in 1984.  I saw first hand the energy required
in filmmaking, from the preproduction stage to the final screening.
    I was working hard on my own paintings, and showing my work in group shows around the city.  I was offered a two-person show by Lubo Rastovski at his 6th Street gallery.  I also began painting on fabric, and these images were shown at The Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, and The Madison Art Center in Wisconsin.
    Although I was succeeding in getting my art out into the world, I was struggling financially.  I continued to work in the film industry, but picked up a part-time job working for
Jonathan Scull at his limousine company. His parents, Ethel and Robert, were major art
collectors, and they had championed artists like Jasper Johns and Andy Warhol. Through
Mr. Sculls’ company I met and drove many artists including Andy Warhol, Brice
Marden, Kenny Scharf, Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Mary Boone, and many
others.  I would sell a painting occasionally, and relish the opportunity to see such star artists.
    For health reasons I began to travel and live in Mexico for four to five months
out of the year (1985-1990). I traveled extensively throughout Mexico, basking in the works of
Tamayo, Siquieros, and a rich Mexican artistic tradition. I was enlivened by the wonderful
painterly light and color everywhere in Mexico.
    By 1990, I discovered the cities of Taos and Santa Fe in New Mexico.  I felt an energy calling me there.  So, I severed my New York ties and moved to Taos, New Mexico. My desire for a community of artists, writers and creative people gave me the impetus to manifest
Café Oasis. From 1993-2005, I operated in this alternative universe. Oasis’ customers have included Francesco Clemente, Willie Nelson, Cher, Antonio Banderas and Salma
Hayek. Through all of these dealings I have always enjoyed smiling behind the scenes.
    I have embraced all of these changes in my life, and even now, as I write this, I feel a new chapter beginning.

Richard Kurtz
January 2010
Santa Fe, New Mexico