Archive for the ‘Beyond Eden Art Fair’ tag

A Dozen : Brett Amory

This week for A Dozen we talk with Brett Amory out of San Francisco. Uniquely combining images in Photoshop and painting, his work is amazing. He has been published in Convergence in 2005 and Twenty2wo Magazine and Pages Magazine in 2009. Definitely look out for his art in times to come. If you’re in the LA area this weekend be sure and check out the New Contemporary Art Fair at the LA Municipal Art Gallery at Barnsdall Park, running October 9th, 10th and 11th.

waiting_28

Waiting # 28
oil on wood panel 48″ x 96″

Where and how did you get your start in art?

I moved to San Francisco when I was 21 to study motion pictures at the Academy of Arts University. I was skateboarding and playing a lot of music at the time. I really didn’t have any direction. The first person I met in San Francisco was a painter and I just sort of fell into the arts.

After a couple years of playing around with art I switched my major to fine art. Before I started painting I was really into Photoshop. I would make these wacky montages from my shitty drawings. At the time I thought they were really cool but looking back on it they were pretty messed up. When I started painting I kept using Photoshop and eventually I combined painting with Photoshop.

What separates your work from others?

I usually start off taking pictures of people waiting for stuff, and then I go through the pictures and start montaging them together in Photoshop. After I come up with something I like I’ll do a really loose five-minute painting with a big brush. I take a picture of the painting and add the picture to the Photoshop file changing the original image. I repeat the process of going back and forth between the image and the painting until I have something that works. The painting changes the image the image changes the painting. This process was developed over ten years of experimenting. My work is the end product of this process.

waiting_39

Waiting #39
oil on wood panel 24″ x 36″

How do you view the recent movement of "crowd sourcing" to fund new art projects?

I have never heard of "crowd sourcing."

Sure sounds like a good way to fund new art projects.

What problems do you see in the art world and how would you fix them?

Art trends seem to be dictated by curators. They seem to have the control of deciding what art is important. These trends influence emerging artist to make art in order to fit a market.

Emerging artist should focus on the work and not on showing in the beginning. Give your work some time to develop before building the hype. When the work is there the hype follows.

waiting_31

Waiting #31
oil on wood panel 24″ x 36″

How do you use the online universe to your advantage?

Where to begin. The online universe is awesome! I use it for everything. Online submitting has made getting your work out there so much easier. I submit to galleries, online galleries, blogs, websites, magazines, online publications the possibilities are endless. I love the Internet

What was your first big break in the art world?

I’m still waiting.

When I was asked to be in Convergence that was pretty awesome.

waiting_34

Waiting # 34
oil on wood panel 24″ x 36″

How would you characterize your work stylistically?

That’s a good question.

I really don’t know. If I were to label my work I would probably categorize it as modern painting.

Who are some of the major influences in shaping your personal and artistic evolution?

I have so many influences but my biggest influences have to be my uncle Ed and my closest friends. My first experience with art was from Ed. His work always made me want to do art.

I started painting pretty late but I was lucky to be surrounded by great artist. While I was in school I met Gage Opdenbrouw, Kim Cogan, David Choong Lee, MARs 1 and Jerome Opena. Hanging out and watching these guys grow really helped me develop my own work.

waiting_40

Waiting #40
oil on wood panel 24″ x 36″

What mediums do you constrain yourself too?

I’m an oilman.

What advice can you give to emerging talent trying to get more exposure?

Make sure your confident with your work then make sure your website accurately portrays your work. Start submitting your site to online publications, magazines, blogs and other websites. Be clickable, build online presence and start generating hype. The galleries will follow. Work hard and never give up.

waiting_20

Waiting #20
oil on wood panel 24″ x 36″

Where would you like to see your work displayed in the future?

London, Berlin, and Rome, Japan places I haven’t been to yet.

Which contemporary artists do you think are having the greatest impact in the art world?

I have a lot of respect for graffiti and street art. It’s the next thing. The underdog is coming up and it’s going to take us all by surprise.

waiting_44

Waiting #44
oil on wood panel 9.5″ x 48″

::all images courtesy of Brett Amory ::

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Posted: October 9th, 2009
at 10:17am by Koookiecrumbles

Tagged with , , , , ,


Categories: contemporary,a dozen

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