Nathaniel Mather was born and raised in California. He received his education from the Art Center College of Design and the California Institute of the Arts. His paintings are rich in playfulness of spirit and symbolic allusiveness that give them a poise and sophistication that are emphatically contemporary. Since the early days of his work, his paintings have addressed his longing for an ongoing relationship and dialogue with God and a spiritual connection with him. He’s processing what it looks like to paint work that’s restorative, true, and beautiful. Mather wants to reflect God’s grace and wonder while wrestling with daily pain and struggles. His work is mainly inspired by his personal relationship with God. He therefore develops an attitude that aligns his thoughts to the will of God. He has found that an attitude of disconnection and anger does not enable him to produce work he is interested in.
In 1996, he began to incorporate text into his works and found objects into his paintings to illustrate the current cultural slide. Mather’s images are often parallel to his daily life and struggles, which he shares with the viewer. Incorporating paper and stamps into his work gives his paintings a quality of experience, age, and travel. The donkey and horse are a common image in his work – that to him suggest the beauty and strength of God. Flowers and birds represent human emotions and characteristics. His paintings are done in water medium materials and are usually on board or canvas.
