Frank C. Moore II (June 22, 1953 – April 21, 2002) was a

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

-based painter, winner of the

Logan Medal of the Arts The Logan Medal of the Arts was an arts prize initiated in 1907 and associated with the Art Institute of Chicago, the Frank G Logan family and the Society for Sanity in Art. From 1917 through 1940, 270 awards were given for contributions to Amer ...

, and a member of the

Visual AIDS Visual AIDS is an art organization based in New York City. Started in 1988, it is one of the first initiatives to record the impact of the AIDS pandemic on the artistic community. Art institutions and AIDS-related communities co-developed project ...

Artist Caucus—the organization responsible for the (Red) Ribbon Project, A Day Without Art, and A Night Without Light. Moore's father, Earle K. Moore, was a communications and civil rights lawyer in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

, who won a

landmark case Landmark court decisions, in present-day common law legal systems, establish precedents that determine a significant new legal principle or concept, or otherwise substantially affect the interpretation of existing law. "Leading case" is commonly u ...

establishing that broadcast stations must serve the interests of their viewers. His sister, Rebecca Moore, would later become a computer scientist, environmentalist, and founder of

Google Earth Outreach Google Earth is a web mapping, web and computer program created by Google that renders a 3D computer graphics, 3D representation of Earth based primarily on satellite imagery. The program maps the Earth by superimposition, superimposing satelli ...

. Also online as Frank Moore was born in Manhattan in 1953, then moved with his family to Long Island, N.Y., first to Great Neck, and then to Roslyn, where he first attended Roslyn Junior High School. He graduated from Roslyn High School in 1971, where he had been active in student politics and served as class president. Moore's work was selected for display for years in the high school halls. They were eventually removed during a renovation and subsequently lost. He attended Yale, where he graduated ''

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

'' in 1975, and he studied at the

Cité internationale des arts The Cité internationale des arts is an artist-in-residence building complex which accommodates artists of all specialities and nationalities in Paris. It comprises two sites, one located in the Marais and the other in Montmartre. Approximately ...

in Paris from 1977 to 1979. His art began appearing in group exhibitions in 1979, as he worked as a set designer for modern dance choreographer Jim Self in Manhattan. Deeply indebted to

Surrealism Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

, Moore's paintings frequently depict dream scenarios and futuristic landscapes, often with

environmental Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, referring respectively to all living and non-living things occurring naturally and the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism ...

sub-texts (in a picture-postcard

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the Canada–United States border, border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York (s ...

, chemical signatures of pollutants drift in the mist), or references to

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

(in ''Viral Romance'', 1992, a reversed bouquet blooms

human immunodeficiency virus The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause AIDS, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of th ...

). His political stance was broad and nuanced with homoerotic imagery. He died of AIDS on April 21, 2002, aged 48. Late in 2012, the double exhibition ''Toxic Beauty'', comprising the most comprehensive review of Moore's work, was on view at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

. His sister Rebecca Moore completed his work setting up the Gesso Foundation for artists after his death.

References

Bibliography

* Frank Moore: Sperone Westwater, by Tom Breidenbach, Artforum, January 2004, pp. 154–155, 1 January 2004 * Frank Moore retrospective "Frank Moore", by

Andrew Cornell Robinson Andrew Cornell Robinson (born 1968) is an American artist and designer. He is based in New York City. Career Robinson's work spans various media from ceramics and painting to printmaking and sculpture. His work combines humor, history, and sculpt ...

Sperone Westwater Gallery, New York, New York, Gay City News, Volume 2, Issue 41 October 9–15, 2003. *"Versace's Medusa: (Capita)lizing upon Classical Antiquity," by Michele Valerie Ronnick, Helios 32(2005) 173-181. (on Moore's 1997 painting "To Die For." * Art frames puzzle of today's life, Orlando Sentinel, 14 June 2002, pp. E1, E3, 14 June 2002 * Art and AIDS, Orlando Weekly, 13 June 2002
Frank Moore’s Dark Thoughts, by Roslyn Bernstein, Guernica Magazine, 26 November 2012.

Frank Moore exhibit (2021)
at the

David Zwirner Gallery David Zwirner Gallery is an American contemporary art gallery owned by David Zwirner. It has four gallery spaces in New York City and one each in Los Angeles, London, Hong Kong, and Paris. History The Zwirner Gallery opened in 1993 on the gr ...

, curated by

Hilton Als Hilton Als (born 1960) is an American writer and theater critic. He is a teaching professor at the University of California, Berkeley, an associate professor of writing at Columbia University and a staff writer and theater critic for ''The New Yo ...

External links

Sperone Westwater Gallery
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20040723122735/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1248/is_5_91/ai_101010685 ''Art in America'' retrospective at the

Albright-Knox Art Gallery The Buffalo AKG Art Museum, formerly known as the Albright–Knox Art Gallery, is an art museum located adjacent to Delaware Park, Buffalo, New York, United States. The museum shows modern art and contemporary art. It is directly opposite Buff ...

, Buffalo, New York. {{DEFAULTSORT:Moore, Frank C. 1953 births 2002 deaths American gay artists American LGBTQ painters AIDS-related deaths in New York (state) Painters from New York City People from Great Neck, New York People from Roslyn, New York 20th-century American painters American male painters Gay painters Yale University alumni Roslyn High School alumni 20th-century American LGBTQ people 20th-century American male artists