Today we’d like to introduce you to Trevor Coopersmith.
Hi Trevor, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’ve been fortunate enough to be raised in a background where my father is a professional artist. There has always been a home studio for me to explore various media and really dive into my creative endeavors. However, it wasn’t until age 15 when I truly gravitated towards painting after a trip to Ensenada, Mexico, where I witnessed a man creating surreal landscapes on the side streets using spray paint and household items. This was during a difficult mental and personal time when I was constantly getting in trouble in school and even expelled for a year. Painting truly turned my life around and over the past decade, I have really pushed my work to new limits. Studying at the University of California Santa Barbara, exploring new techniques abroad in London, and completing a residency in Texas have developed my practice greatly. I’m currently based in Culver City (near LAX) but return home often to Carlsbad at my dad’s home studio to participate in outdoor exhibitions and work on projects as a father/son team.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Working towards my career aspirations as a College Art Professor has definitely had its challenges. My family was not financially stable during the 2008 housing crisis and I was faced with the burden of paying for my college tuition without any financial support from my family. I decided to attend Community College at Mira Costa in Oceanside and worked multiple part-time jobs while going to school for three years until I received my AA in Art.
After graduating from UCSB debt-free, I moved to London to pursue my Master’s Degree but was faced with a multitude of political complexities abroad. This was during Brexit and my school (Goldsmiths, University of London) had faculty strikes. Meetings and lectures with professors were canceled and I was having trouble finding work with a student visa. When COVID-19 started it was a reasonable time for me to return back to San Diego and focus on obtaining my master’s degree in Southern California, where I’m currently based in LA.
It has been a lifelong goal of mine to get a master’s in Fine Arts degree, and I am thankful to be a part of the upcoming cohort at Otis College of Art & Design, an established art school for over 100 years. With my degree, I can emphasize social practice and expound upon my painting techniques while being qualified to teach at the college level.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My work is often inspired by experiences and trips I plan with those closest to me. I’ve had the pleasure of summiting Mt. Fuji, Mt. Whitney, and have completed multiple overnight backpacking trips (up to 18 days), and even rode my skateboard for 115 miles across central California. These trips inspire my work and are testaments of human tenacity, and interconnectivity and are part of cultivating relationships with the world in which we are surrounded by.
Recently I’ve been experimenting with spray paint and oil pastel, which are fairly non-traditional media. The human figure has been my theme of interest lately, where I find value in the various curvatures and undulations of the human form. I’ve also created interactive work, such as filling an entire gallery with sand, and a sculptural cube where people outlined their bodies with chalk. This piece was inspired by a student on the Autism spectrum who found respite from overstimulation by drawing with chalk outside. Witnessing these moments helped me reflect on my relationship to the community and overlapped with my years of volunteering and teaching art to underrepresented communities. This includes adults and children with disabilities, at-risk teenagers, low-income students, and students in the juvenile detention system. Inclusivity and accessibility are key concepts within my practice, which run parallel to my drive for teaching and helping others succeed through art and experiencing the world around us.
What matters most to you? Why?
Watching others grow and enjoy a creative form of self-expression is the most rewarding aspect of being an artist. Don’t get me wrong, it feels great to sell my work, but my ultimate drive is helping others succeed and is also why I established a scholarship foundation for high school art students. The Urban Art Scholarship identifies artistically driven students in need of financial support and awards a $350 grant annually to those who wish to pursue a career in the arts, specifically social practice, and who also wish to give back to the community. Fostering a sustainable support system for artists to develop their practice holds the highest value for me.
Contact Info:
- Email: trevorcoopersmith@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.trevorcoopersmith.com/
- Instagram: instagram.com/infinitesprayart
