Todd’s legacy is that of an artist who didn’t just cross boundaries – he redrew them,
challenging us to see the art in everything and the potential for everything in art.
Embracing Collaborative Innovation
Welcome to a special space dedicated to exploring the profound impact of collaborative ventures on the legacy of Todd Murphy, a visionary and experimental artist. This page aims not only to share but also to delve deeply into Todd's diverse and often unconventional collaborations, ranging from his work with architects and tech startups to his projects with musicians, theater professionals, designers, and the broader community. These chapters of his career, though sometimes misunderstood or criticized, are integral to his artistic narrative. They demonstrate how Todd's experimental approach transcended traditional art boundaries and ventured into the fabric of life itself. Here, we celebrate and scrutinize these collaborations, seeing them as vital reflections of his artistic ethos and his profound impact on the art world. Proposal For Music Midtown Atlanta, 2003
Art and Architecture -
Walking was a huge part of Murphy's creative process. Wherever he lived he took time to walk the landscape, urban or rural. In Atlanta on his walks home from his studio he envision "social spaces" he believed would repair Atlanta's urban disconnections.
"More and more, the people that I'm interested in are around the development, planning, design, architecture world," 2007 Peach Magazine
"architecture and art have collided" 2007 Peach Magazine
"I walk through the city and see nothing but opportunity.” 2007 Peach Magazine
1998-2011 were years when Todd’s interest in collaboration and urban design expanded. He was connecting and collaborating with a global community of architects, designers, tech start ups, musicians and entrepreneurs on urban design, curatorial projects and film all the while maintaining an active studio practice. Todd's legacy is one of a visionary artist who recognized and harnessed the interconnectedness of creativity across all realms of human endeavor.
2007-08 Experimenting with Projection and using his favorite Apple screen saver from that time.
The revolutionary shift toward bits and pixels
as our primary modes of communication means that, in the future it will be the ability to see, not to manipulate abstract symbols, that will matter most. Science as a whole has returned to art. At the same time, biology has replaced physics as the master science. TECHNOLOGY and Art , Charlottesville, Va, emorphic eFirenz Collaborating in and envisioning a new Renaissance in contemporary culture; recognizing the seismic shifts in information exchange, business formation, and consumer interaction driven by the Internet and emerging technologies; foreseeing a world where art, business, and technology intermingle; "a digital technologies entrepreneur , a classical pianist, a film maker and a physicist all working together toward the creation of a model for trading derivatives based on superstring theory.”
eFirenz from mission statement, 2000
Todd Murphy: Beyond the Canvas - Embracing Collaborative Innovation and Personal Reflection
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In navigating the rich tapestry of Todd Murphy's artistic journey, I find myself at the intersection of personal memory and professional stewardship. From 1998 to 2020, Todd's career was a testament to an unbridled spirit that transcended traditional artistic realms, embracing architecture, design, music, and film. Each collaboration was a reflection of his relentless drive to innovate and his unique ability to leave an indelible mark on every creative field he touched.
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As his partner in life and now as the guardian of his legacy, I see the layers of complexity that defined not just his art, but our life together. Todd was as challenging as he was brilliant, as demanding as he was visionary. His path, much like the Renaissance artists he mirrored in his work with the tech startup Emorphic, later eFirenz, was marked by a fearless, often unempathetic approach that both illuminated and shadowed his relationships.
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Todd's contribution to Emorphic in 1999 wasn’t merely artistic; it was a profound intellectual endeavor that painted a vision of a world where art, technology, and daily life intertwine. This vision, while reflective of immense innovation and foresight, also mirrors the complexities of Todd's own persona – uninhibited, pathologically fearless, yet lacking in conventional empathy.
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In this journey of preserving his legacy, I've encountered my own challenges. The aftermath of Todd's passing exposed me to a world where my innate trust and optimism were tested. It’s a learning curve – recognizing and navigating the intentions of others while honoring Todd's spirit and our shared life.
Now, as I steward his legacy, I strive for a balance between the personal and the professional. Celebrating Todd's legacy means acknowledging the full spectrum of his being – his groundbreaking artistry and the personal complexities that shaped his life and our family’s.
ATL Peach-2007 and 64 Magazine- 2000 -Todd’s thoughts on Public art and sculpture
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Neither he nor Murphy comments on why their business relationship ended, though for an artist whose work is as sought-after as Murphy's, there might be an urge to stop handing over the 50-percent commissions that are customary. But Lowe says, "As imperfect as the gallery system is, it is the only mechanism that exists for creating sanction for an artist's evolution and the growth of their career. My concern for Todd is that there is no advocacy for the work, by any gallery anywhere in the country, nor any museum, nor any strong critical voice. On the other hand, maybe this is a new paradigm and I just don't get it."
TODD MURPHY EXHIBTION AT MOCA JAX 2007
TODD MURPHY EXHIBITION ROBERT KIDD GALLERY, 2007
TODD MURPHY VIRGINIA HISTORICAL SOCIETY 2002-2003 ENSLAVED LIFE ON VA PRESIDENTS PLANTATIONS
SOVEREIGN CURATORIAL AND ARTIST CONTRIBUTIONS
Murphy would likely agree. “The model's changing. That salon model--you hang your paintings and there's an opening-it just isn't as compelling to me as it used to be."
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Sally Hemings' dress fluttering aloft gave him a taste for making public art and designing public spaces. Whenever he does, they will surely be political-in the root sense, from the Greek for citizen. For this work he may need dealers, collectors and other artists a whole lot less. "More and more, the people that I'm interested in are around the development, planning, design, architecture world," he says, asserting that "architecture and art have collided" already; and perhaps he is right. Todd Murphy may be the most bankable, and most accessible, artist ever to come out of Atlanta. "I walk through the city," he says now, “and see nothing but opportunity.” MONUMENT TO SALLY HEMINGS
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A PORTRAIT OF RTHE ARTIST BY JON LERNER, PHOTOGRAPHED BY ALEX MARTINEZ THIS IS A GREAT READ FOR WAHT TODD VIEW OF AN ARTIST ROLE AND PLACE IN SOCIETY
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64 MAGAZINE THIS IS A GOOD READ ON TODD’S ARTISTIC VISION FOR SOCIAL SCULPTURE AND PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT
Monument to Sally Hemings
Charlottesville, Virginia, 2000 more on this work HERE