David S. Mather

David S. Mather is an Assistant Professor of Art History & Criticism at Stony Brook University. He specializes in early 20th-century European and American art, with a focus on Italian Futurism, color theory, and avant-garde movements. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of California, San Diego, where his dissertation explored visual structures in early Italian futurism. Mather’s research bridges art, science, and technology, as seen in his Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship (2013–14) at MIT’s Architecture Department, collaborating with the Center for Art, Science & Technology (CAST). He also held a Getty Research Institute fellowship (2013), investigating early 20th-century color theories.

His publications include Futurist Conditions: Imagining Time in Italian Futurism (2020) and contributions to journals like Getty Research Journal and Leonardo. He has curated exhibits blending electronic media and traditional art, collaborating with organizations like the Society for the Activation of Social Space through Art and Sound (SASSAS). Mather’s work emphasizes the intersection of artistic mediums with sociopolitical currents, particularly the role of photography and cinema in avant-garde practices.

• Education: Ph.D. Art History, UC San Diego (2011)
• Awards: Andrew Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship, Getty Research Institute Fellowship
• Key Projects: Co-editor of Experience: Culture, Cognition, and the Common Sense (2016), which explores sensory and cultural realms through interdisciplinary lenses.

His research highlights the transformative potential of art in addressing technological and social changes, as seen in his analysis of Futurist chromatic principles and their sociopolitical connotations.