M.E.Brannon
ESSAT Show
My friends the Russo's and I at my show at the ESSAT Gallery on the campus at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas.
Artist Statement
M. E. Brannon
As a true Romantic, I yearn for the transcendental and universal and feel a special connection to nature. My ties to the native landscape spring from my childhood; most of which was spent outdoors. Painting the landscape marries my two worlds. A lifetime spent in nature, observing nature and learning to be a part of nature; developed within me the spirit of a Romantic and a Pantheist.
I begin with my emotional reaction to a particular landscape: the light might capture my imagination, or a particular mood, color scheme or textures, and I will make photographs. These become the jumping off point, for the actual process of laying down strokes and the action of painting itself is a very important aspect of my work. I subscribe to the idea that a practice such as painting is a form of active meditation (like walking a labyrinth) and a transportational process which removes me from myself and connects me with something greater than myself, much in the same way being in nature does.
I approach my subject from two points of view depending on the media, watercolor or acrylics. Water media requires that you relinquish some control and let the paint do what it wants to do naturally. Allowing the paint to surprise you with interesting varieties of hue, graininess and blooms can be awesome. Just like observing nature. Painting traditional landscapes for a number of years helped to develop the technical skill to depict nature in a realistic manner and is indicative of my style. My watercolors embody my immediate surroundings. In the acrylics, I am experimenting with the idea of probable landscapes. These paintings may be seen as beautiful or horrible, or both at the same time. These combine an interest in the “New Physics” which I symbolize with a heightened or non-local use of color.
It is also my hope that all of my paintings bring a heightened awareness to the viewer as well. The watercolors serve as a story and a reminder of the natural beauty which surrounds us and the acrylics to illicit the viewer’s imagination to visit probable realities or futures which may await us down the current path. Each direction may raise questions regarding the current state and future of our planet’s environment.
Education
Summer 2002 - Spring 2005
BFA Drawing and Painting
Spring 1996 - Fall 1997
Associates Degree/Communication Design
Awards Received
1998 Town North National Bank Merit Scholarship,
The National Honors Society (1998 to Present)
Fall 2002, Spring 2003, Fall 2003. Spring 2004 Presidents List University of North Texas
2003-2004 Roger K. Thomason Scholarship, SOVA UNT
Escoda Brush Award Visual Artists of
Exhibitions
Watercolor Series Show, Nature Is My Church
UNT Environmental Science and Technology Gallery
July thru August 2004
Curated by Brian Wheeler (Gallery Director)
Watercolor Series Show, Nature Is My Church
UNT Environmental Science and Technology Gallery
November thru December 2004
(Special reinstallation request)
Curated by Brian Wheeler (Gallery Director)
Group Show, New Paragraph
Cora Stafford Gallery
SOVA
Dec. 2004 Self Curated
Group Show, NEX ISM
Cora Stafford Gallery
SOVA
April. 2005 Self Curated
VAST - Visual Art Society of
