David Attyah

Education
MFA School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

David John Attyah is a contemporary artist based in Los Angeles. Attyah has two distinct art lives. In his private, contemplative world, his projects use drawing, printmaking and small-scale fabrication to explore aspects of the psychological and existential self. His somber and muted drawings and etchings examine eroticism, intimacy, stigma, male vitality, fragility and vulnerability from the queer perspective.

In his outward identity, Attyah is a political artist and activist, and is co-founder of the collaborative THINK AGAIN. His large-scale public works use action and humor to tackle hot button social issues like homophobia, political violence, and economic justice. His recent public projects focus on HIV awareness (ARTCondonNYC) and trans awareness (We Can Be Heroes).

Attyah’s work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including Worcester Art Museum (Boston); Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona; Arizona State University Art Museum, the West Hollywood Public Library and the Los Angeles LGBTQ Center. He is former proprietor of PhlatPhile: Art On Paper.

Attyah’s studio projects are documented in the book The Jugular (2013); his public projects are documented in the monograph, A Brief History of Outrage (DAP/2003).

Prior to coming to the visual arts, Attyah worked for a decade in public health with emphasis on community development, HIV prevention, and human rights. He received his Masters of Fine Arts from the Boston Museum School, his Masters of Arts in Cultural Anthropology from Harvard University, and his Bachelors of Arts from Princeton University in Public and International Affairs.

Courses Taught: ART-152 | ART-170 | ART-179 | ART-280