Allen Brewer
Name: Allen Brewer
City/State: St. Paul, MN
Email: abrewer at mcad.edu
Website: allenbrewer.com
Bio~ Allen
Brewer (b. 1974) lives and works in St. Paul, MN, balancing studio
practice with teaching assignments at MCAD. Recent exhibitions
include … 3rd
MN Biennial: curated by David Petersen and John Marks, VERBATIM: at
the MAEP gallery of MIA, Mpls, and SCHAPES N SHPACES: solo painting
exhibition at Thelma Sadoff Center for the Arts, Fond du Lac, WI.
Tell me about your work? What
are you currently working on? How is this different from past
projects?
I’m currently working with the semiotic meaning of form, color and context in painting. I incorporate language as mediation for my paintings, so I find inspiration and possibilities there, but more recently I’ve been trying to communicate another (non-spoken) lexicon within/via painting itself. Past projects (VERBATIM) depended upon a foreign voice or textual prompt to build the work, forcing me to consider material, intent and the paradoxical nature of language (being both limiting and expansive in it’s meaning and usage). My new direction relies more on intuitive gestures and ambiguity rather than clarification and description.
How did you decide to become
an artist?
When I was 4 or 5 I made up my mind that this is what I would “be”. At 17 I considered a career as a professional French horn musician, but ultimately, art proved to offer more flexibility.
What was the best advice given
to you as an artist?
“Don’t ever lie to
yourself”.
Many artists struggle to find
ways to sell their art. How do you sell your work? How do you
market yourself?
I don’t really rely on
sales, but I have sold work in galleries and private commissions.
Fortunately, teaching provides a comfortable substitute, allowing for
more time in the studio actually working, which I am finding more
valuable than sales.
Who are some of the Minnesota artists you enjoy?
I have many good friends who also push artistic expectations, and their names can be found in this very site. That said, aesthetic appreciation shifts from time to time as my own understanding and education expands, so the list continually grows.
If I were to follow you around
to see art in Minnesota, which places would we go? What would we see?
In addition to
www.Local-Artist-Interviews.com, where do you go online for good art
resources, whether to find a new artist, or to see what is going on
in the art world locally and otherwise?
I don’t bother with the web
to find local events or artists, it’s all word of mouth or just
showing up to the (many) openings at museums and galleries that occur
weekly. I generally peruse the web to find events and artists in NYC,
Europe and otherwise, but locally speaking, there is more value in
physically participating in openings and after-parties.
Do you have any exhibits to
promote in the near future?
I am showing a chronological
survey of paintings from the last 4 years in Fond du Lac, WI at the
Thelma Sadoff Center for the Arts until April 11, 2014.
The show is called SCHAPES N SHPACES, the work can be seen here: http://allenbrewer.com/section/319201_exhibitions.html
The show is called SCHAPES N SHPACES, the work can be seen here: http://allenbrewer.com/section/319201_exhibitions.html
Allen Brewer
Image List:
1. Infinity, paintings, found
objects, 2014
2. Fists, acrylic on canvas, 2014
2. Fists, acrylic on canvas, 2014
3. Green Thumb, acrylic on
wood, 2014
4. Reincarnate, acrylic on canvas, 2013
5. National Wrecking Co., acrylic on canvas, 2013
6. Pesher, found wood assemblage, 20147. Image of artist
5. National Wrecking Co., acrylic on canvas, 2013
6. Pesher, found wood assemblage, 20147. Image of artist
7.
Image of the artist
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