From the Issue: Nathaniel Mary Quinn

Read the full interview in Musée Magazine Issue 23: Choices, available here.

ISABELLA KAZANECKI: Before we begin to discuss your work, I’m very interested in your middle name, Mary, which is your late mother’s name. Why did you choose to adopt it?

NATHANIEL MARY QUINN: Yeah, Mary is my middle name but as you said it’s my mother’s first name. My mother never had an education. She could not read or write. So, I adopted her first name as my middle name in honor of her. And also by virtue of going to school and getting the degrees I have earned. The diploma says, Nathaniel Mary Quinn, so it’s almost like she went to school as well.

Nathaniel Mary Quinn, Miss Chairs, 2014.

ISABELLA: You’re from Chicago, right?

NATHANIEL: I am from Chicago. Yes indeed.

ISABELLA: Do you think growing up in Chicago influenced who you currently are as an artist?

NATHANIEL: Oh yeah, absolutely. In many ways known to me and still unknown to me. Well for starters...growing up on the south side of Chicago. It was a very poor community lacking resources. There was crime, organized crime, drug addiction. My drawings were a way for me to garner respect and protection from local gang members. I learned, early on, the value of my pictures. The other kids in the community who were interested in art would ask for tips from me. Everyone wanted to know how to draw muscle men, so I learned to understand the proportions of the human form so that I could teach my friends. It was my way to garner protection but also connect with my peers, and I was in a way, an educator and a mentor.

Nathaniel Mary Quinn, Claire Mae, 2014.