Installation View of Domesticity Forgotten —The Art of Assemblage, 2021, Courtesy of the Artist and Alyssa Davis Gallery, NY
Through the language of experience and time, the work of Daniel T. Gaitor Lomack will entice your every nerve in ways one seldom does as a viewer. The artist approaches each piece with such dedication and thought, that each product—be it a performance movement, a funky installation piece, or an expressive seasonal painting, becomes its own self, carries out its own identity. Inspired by time, daily experiences and a natural exposure to music, entertainment and art, Gaitor Lomack uses found material to carry out his oeuvre. His practice speaks consistently of his upbringing in a large family with a myriad of interesting people to look up to. Of growing up learning to trust your instinct, and to live comfortably among chaos and spontaneity, as well as deeply rooted cultural roots. We had the chance to interview this conceptual pioneer. Read below to learn more about Daniel T. Gaitor Lomack, his upbringing and unique craft.
Risk Taker (Cut Throat), 2019, Courtesy of the Artist and Alyssa Davis Gallery, NY
Tell us a little bit about yourself. Where are you from and how did art first come into your life?
I’m from a small town in New Jersey, Art has always been a part of my life through a few musicians and my family. They were people who helped me see sounds, and allowed me to understand how important art actually is. My first interaction I feel was my first interaction with people. From early on, I’ve used my my mind as a shutter to capture things that happen around me and transform it into something physical. I use that shutter and try to capture the identity of a situation. Simply put, I could say I have a film-based imagination. Then there’s me growing up in broken housing with no manual to how to go about doing things. I’m the oldest of my siblings, so I was always marking the path. When I was a kid, I would go to my grandma’s house a lot. I remember her having a huge pile of junk in her garage that frankly shaped the way I interact with objects and approach my work.
Babies Born Outta Bullet Ho’s, 2018, Courtesy of the Artist and Alyssa Davis Gallery, NY
Has your work always taken on the style it currently embodies?
As far as my style goes, I feel it’s always changing and constantly for the better. I have real trust for where this work has taken me and will take me. The secret lies in becoming more productive, and to continue finding the secrets within yourself. That takes substantial time for the work to have a sensible meaning. My experience with objects is sometimes I find them, and sometimes they find me. I think constantly about materiality and how the imagination is embodied in a certain material made into something more meaningful.
King’s Blue (I’ll Be Seeing You), 2020, Courtesy of the Artist and Alyssa Davis Gallery
From where do you draw inspiration?
I’m inspired by people and individuals. The potential of what I have been and what I could be. Freedom. How hard people work to create their own value beyond their class or hierarchy. The risk, and knowing how the greater the risk the greater the reward. I’m inspired by an absence of hesitation, and by doing more than what is expected.
Performance Documentation of Where’s There Smoke, There’s Fire, 2020-21, Courtesy of the Artist and Lyles & King, NY
Walk us through a day in the studio.
A day in the studio for me is going through different worlds, or going through different times. I can be looking at a picture of a 1920’s building, then I see what cars were trendy in the 50’s, and then I’ll bounce around to some music, probably a 6-hour long playlist I made the night before… I really enjoy the natural light, and browsing through the books I’ve collected; I like how the words on the binding create poems once they’re mashed together. All that sparks an elusive beat, a conundrum. Then I sit with the work and think about my battle for the day. I try to mouth something from the heart that is honest and true based on the work around me. I may take a walk around and exchange words of wisdom with people I see in the street. I’m working out in the studio sometimes, there’s always something different going on. I can’t get anything done without my incense. I like mixing up the scents, and lighting candles in the night time. And there’s always time for dancing.
Installation View of XXXIII Lighters On My Dresser, 2021, Courtesy of the Artist and Lyles & King, NY
Of all the mediums you’ve worked with, do you have a preferred favorite?
I like to become the medium and the bond within everything I do. I’m the voice that echoes the process. I trust in the process, and I understand that trust is the process itself.
Mo Money Mo Murder Mo Homicide- Winter in New Heaven, 2020, Courtesy of the Artist and Lyles & King, NY
What larger questions do you believe your work asks?
My work is a bunch of questions and answers, because it’s all knowledge of myself and experience. It’s not much questions my work asks… we don’t ask permission, we bridge and build worlds. If anything, my work speaks to human emotions in one of its purest forms. I think the nature of that feels like water. Think about someone relaxing in water. I think my work provides that. Think about the wind kissing your forehead, I think my work speaks to that. There’s so many angles, so many depictions dealing with something, I feel my work is an assemblage of all that this existence is.
Knowledge Ablaze, 2017-2019, Courtesy of the Artist and Night Gallery, LA
Does your work reference any Art Historical movements or figures?
The work pays homage to everything. A performance of mine can walk you through Art History itself. If you tune into my work, you see a load of periods, movements, and visuals that incorporate Art History in some way or another. My work spirals through all historical moments, and plays homage to figures and images that live around me today.
Where The Hood At, 2019, Courtesy of the Artist and Night Gallery, LA
What’s next for you?
I have a few exciting things coming up. I’m participating in a group show titled Delusionarium 5 (D5) with Night Gallery in mid May, in the summer time I have another group show at James Cohen gallery with NXTHVN. I have a residency coming up in Puglia in August, and I’ll be traveling around Europe after that. I feel the work is sufficiently powerful to spread around while I’m there. Maybe I’ll build a house, you never know.
