Gregory de la Haba is an American interdisciplinary artist, writer, curator and cultural producer. His work explores themes of addiction, contemporary notions of masculinity and Duende.
Biography
De la Haba was born in Astoria, Queens. He received a BLA from in 1993 where he graduated cum laude. In 1998 de la Haba married Teresa Maher, heiress to the legendary pub McSorely's Old Ale House. De la Haba was commissioned to paint Maher's portrait by her father Matty Maher to commemorate her being the first female bartender in the bar's 165 year history. De la Haba continues McSorely's long tradition of attracting notable artists and writers like John Lennon, e.e. Cummings, Robert Henri, John Sloan and George Bellows by hosting literary events with contemporary writers like Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Franz Wright, Micah Ling, Douglas Light, Kevin O'Hara, Rob Sedgwick, Jack Brown, TJ English, John Reed, Jeffrey Wright, Joseph O'Connor, and Richard Stratton, among others.
Career
De la Haba's work has been exhibited at galleries and art fairs world-wide, including , Monaco, France; East End Collected4, ; Design Week Milan; , New York, NY; Mykonos Biennale 2014; Salzach Biennial, ; , Queens Museum; Kunsthaus Tacheles, ; SCOPE Art Show; and . In 2009 De la Haba was the Artist-in-Residence at Jack the Pelican Presents. In 2004 de la Haba exhibited his McSorley's Sketchbook Series at New York University's , with an accompanying exhibition catalogue essay written by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Frank McCourt. De la Haba is represented by , Dusseldorf, Germany.
Projects
Since 2008, de la Haba has produced art-related ventures through his creative platform Bodega de la Haba. Curatorial projects include, , 2018, Geuer & Geuer Art GmbH, Dusseldorf, Germany ; Frieze Frame: Important Paintings by American Artist Judy Rifka, A 40 Year Retrospective: Paintings from 1974-2016, 2016, Amstel Gallery at The Yard; , 2016, Avant Garde LES in New York, NY; John Havens Thornton: 50 Years of Painting: 1964-2014, 2016, Amstel Gallery, New York, NY; , 2016, Featuring Peter Beard, Olivier Zahm, Michael Dweck, Max Snow, Will Cotton, Anna Bloda, Spencer Tunick, and Natalie White, ROX Gallery, New York, NY; Magnificent Obsession: The Early Paintings of Abstract Expressionist Joann Gedney , 2014, ROX Gallery, New York, NY; Pacific/Current, 2014, Featuring , , , Gregory Siff, and Casper Brindle; , Washington, DC; What Rules: Featuring Kathy Grayson, Laura O’Reilly, Gregory de la Haba, & Lee Wells, 2014, Cutlog, New York, NY; and Colette Lumiere, Justine’s Reverse Pop Series, 1978-1983, 2013, The Yard, New York, NY. As a patron of the arts, de la Haba sponsored The Beatles Complete On Ukele Awards with David Barrett, 2011 at Bowery Hotel, New York, NY, and in 2009 he established the Carlos Collazo Scholarship at in San Juan, PR, in honor of the artist who died of AIDS in 1989.
Film and Theater
Theater productions include, , 2014 by Terrence Browne, which premiered at Carnegie Hall; Fishing for Paradise, 2014, by Michael Gorman, painting and sculpture by Gregory de la Haba, La MaMa; How And Why I Robbed My First Cheese Store, 2011, by Michael Gorman with Installation by Gregory de la Haba, La MaMa. Film productions include , 2014 by Allan Weisbecker.
Writing
De la Haba’s writings and artworks have been featured in The New York Times, Southampton Review, Rizzoli’s Irish America, , Whitehot Magazine and . From 2014-2018 the artist co-owned and published Whitehot Magazine and Quiet Lunch. Currently, de la Haba is the International Editor for the art and culture magazine, . In the Summer of 2020, his memoir, Curriculum Vitae: A Journey from Montauk, Elsewhere and Back, will be published by . As a publisher, De la Haba has worked with several contemporary art writers including Anthony Haden Guest, , and , among others.
