BRANDON BREWER
Artist Statement
My work symbolizes the active assembly of three elements centered around community: Black joy, Black beauty, and Blackness. What began as a therapeutic act of self-care during quarantine—arranging and recombining images that reflected my identity—evolved into a form of political action. Through this process, I discovered that my personal journey of healing and self-expression could contribute to a larger dialogue about Black identity and representation.
​
Recently, I've fully embraced oil painting, using AI as a collaborative tool to reimagine fragments of my earlier collage work and generate new references. This exploration manifests in works like my triptych series, where isolated facial features and hands float in negative space, creating visual poetry of disassembled identity. These AI-generated images inspire my exploration of surreal and impossible forms, speaking to the complexity of identity. The iterative nature of AI mirrors the dynamic and multifaceted nature of identity itself, emphasizing that identity is not fixed but in constant evolution. My ultimate goal is for my art to remain deeply personal while resonating with the public, fostering new conversations and perspectives.
Artist Bio
Artist Bio Brandon Brewer began his college career majoring in Media Arts with a minor in Studio Art, focusing on digital media and figure drawing. The pandemic of 2020 and the Black Lives Matter movement profoundly transformed his artistic spirit, leading to the discovery of analog and digital collage as therapeutic means of expression and self-discovery. His work celebrates Black joy, explores Black beauty, and examines the multifaceted nature of Blackness—elements he passively absorbed as a media consumer in his youth.
​
Continuing his journey of self-discovery, Brewer now embraces oil painting alongside collage, using AI as a self-referential tool to generate unexpected combinations and iterations of his earlier work, fueling his exploration of identity and form. Oil painting, a forgiving medium akin to drawing with graphite, has offered a tactile sense of discovery, allowing Brewer to experiment freely and reimagine his creative process. In the future, he plans to continue honing his craft, expanding into new mediums while fostering conversations around Black culture and identity through his art.