Interview With Artist
Brad Marr
Fine Art
https://www.instagram.com/bradmarrart/
https://www.bradmarr.com/contact
[email protected]
(402) 452-4230
Portraits
the portrait is a genre that dates back 5000 years. while typically they depict iconic figures of political or royal importance…i like to random subjects as a way to focus on the existential approach to self awarenessi am currently working on a series of portraits based on the word “tourist”. it is based on the idea of humans as tourists on earth during our short time here. the existential elements of distinguishing ourselves through self awareness, free will and personal responsibility while eliminating social conventions.
the portrait is a genre that dates back 5000 years. while typically they depict iconic figures of political or royal importance…i like to random subjects as a way to focus on the existential approach to self awarenessi am currently working on a series of portraits based on the word “tourist”. it is based on the idea of humans as tourists on earth during our short time here. the existential elements of distinguishing ourselves through self awareness, free will and personal responsibility while eliminating social conventions.
"the tourist" - acrylic and silver leaf on canvas - 24"x24" - 2022 - $750
Here is my story.
i am an acrylic painter living in omaha, nebraska. after graduating from the university of nebraska-omaha with a bachelor of fine arts, i was a residency technician for an artist-in-residence program at the bemis center for contemporary arts in omaha, nebraska. from there i have worked in the restaurant industry for 20 years. during the covid pandemic, and after a couple of months without a job, i rediscovered how much art was a huge part of my life and decided to reset and involve painting back into my life.
my inspiration derives from the existence of rebirth and change throughout our lives. after revisiting art after such a long absence, i feel truly blessed to be able to experience this type of rebirth and self awareness. there is also a strong element of existentialism that exists throughout my work, whether it is a painting involving nature or a portrait. i am concerned with and comforted by the feeling of finding self through free will, choice and personal responsibility. the ability to freely distinguish our existence by being self conscious and exist for ourselves eliminates social convention and as a result you can truly love yourself, leading us to love others as well under these guidelines. furthermore, i feel as though the acceptance of these types of changes can only enhance and culture our own self awareness and sense of place.
finally, gandhi says it best..."be the change that you want to see"
i am an acrylic painter living in omaha, nebraska. after graduating from the university of nebraska-omaha with a bachelor of fine arts, i was a residency technician for an artist-in-residence program at the bemis center for contemporary arts in omaha, nebraska. from there i have worked in the restaurant industry for 20 years. during the covid pandemic, and after a couple of months without a job, i rediscovered how much art was a huge part of my life and decided to reset and involve painting back into my life.
my inspiration derives from the existence of rebirth and change throughout our lives. after revisiting art after such a long absence, i feel truly blessed to be able to experience this type of rebirth and self awareness. there is also a strong element of existentialism that exists throughout my work, whether it is a painting involving nature or a portrait. i am concerned with and comforted by the feeling of finding self through free will, choice and personal responsibility. the ability to freely distinguish our existence by being self conscious and exist for ourselves eliminates social convention and as a result you can truly love yourself, leading us to love others as well under these guidelines. furthermore, i feel as though the acceptance of these types of changes can only enhance and culture our own self awareness and sense of place.
finally, gandhi says it best..."be the change that you want to see"
"irena sendler" - acrylic and gold leaf on canvas - 36"x36" - 2021 - $1200
TNYO: Hello Brad it is a pleasure to meet you and have the opportunity to work with you.
Can you tell Us About Self portraits, their beginnings and how you translate them?
Brad Marr:
My portrait series for a show in Nov of 2023 is called "The Tourist". It is based off of a series of volunteer sessions over the summer where I collected over 70 photographs of portraits and settled on 15 subjects. The basis of the show is to highlight the diverse collection of subjects that represent ourselves as tourists investigating earth during our short time here. There is also an existential component as I was concerned with and comforted by the feeling of finding self through free will, choice and personal responsibility.
TNYO: Where do you currently work Brad?
Brad Marr: I currently have a space at the Bench Omaha space in downtown Omaha, Nebraska. It is a great 500 sq ft. studio with access to a full wood shop. There are also about a dozen other artists that make up the other studio spaces.
TNYO: Where are you from originally and where is your family originally from?
Brad Marr: I was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska and that is where my family is from. Upon researching my lineage deeper, my ancestors mainly came from Scotland and Ireland.
TNYO: How does this affect your work, inspire you - or possibly upset you?
Brad Marr: Living in Omaha allows me to work and live in an affordable and inspiring environment. In doing so, the result is that I can spend more time in the studio than worrying so much about the daily grind.
TNYO: Why do you paint - and what does art mean to you?
Brad Marr: I paint for a number of reasons, mainly I paint and create for the same reason that I breathe, so that I can live. Art to me is a way of communicating to the viewer in a way that I can understand. I sometimes find it challenging to communicate via word or mouth and the canvas and process of painting solves that for me.
TNYO: Can you tell us About your portrait series?
Brad Marr: My portrait series for a show in Nov of 2023 is called "The Tourist". It is based off of a series of volunteer sessions over the summer where I collected over 70 photographs of portraits and settled on 15 subjects. The basis of the show is to highlight the diverse collection of subjects that represent ourselves as tourists investigating earth during our short time here. There is also an existential component as I was concerned with and comforted by the feeling of finding self through free will, choice and personal responsibility.
TNYO: Please Brad can you tell us about your nature series and how you come about painting and expressing your art in series?
Brad Marr: My nature series is a collection of images that represent nature at different stages of their lives, a newly blossomed image or that of a decaying plant. It is important to show these stages of life as they are reflective of our own stages of life. This series also appeals to me because in nature, everything is harmonious and adapts and lives together in a natural setting and culture, something that we as humans have a hard time doing. It is the most honest representation of life. As for working in different series of works, I view it the same way that a musician focuses on different concepts for different albums. The style is the same but the subject and purpose are sometimes intertwined.
TNYO: Where will your art go in the future Brad?
Brad Marr: I am currently adding to the portrait and nature series and am working on integrating DNA into the portraits.
TNYO: Do you listen to music when you are working and if you do can you choose a song for our audience to listen to?
Brad Marr: I listen to music at all stages of the creative process. I build and stretch my own stretcher frames and canvases and will listen to Buena Vista Social Club or Nina Simone during the stage. When I am painting I usually listen to EDM music and like artists dusch as Nina Kraviz, Deborah de Luca or David August, and You Man. I also listen to jazz or something else when I am building and assembling the floater frames for the canvas, or working in the woodshop.
As for a song that I would suggest that is "Children" by Deborah de Luca, "Skyscapers" by Nina Kraviz or "Who we Are" by You Man. However I usually just play the 'radio' version of these artists anon Spotify.
Can you tell Us About Self portraits, their beginnings and how you translate them?
Brad Marr:
My portrait series for a show in Nov of 2023 is called "The Tourist". It is based off of a series of volunteer sessions over the summer where I collected over 70 photographs of portraits and settled on 15 subjects. The basis of the show is to highlight the diverse collection of subjects that represent ourselves as tourists investigating earth during our short time here. There is also an existential component as I was concerned with and comforted by the feeling of finding self through free will, choice and personal responsibility.
TNYO: Where do you currently work Brad?
Brad Marr: I currently have a space at the Bench Omaha space in downtown Omaha, Nebraska. It is a great 500 sq ft. studio with access to a full wood shop. There are also about a dozen other artists that make up the other studio spaces.
TNYO: Where are you from originally and where is your family originally from?
Brad Marr: I was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska and that is where my family is from. Upon researching my lineage deeper, my ancestors mainly came from Scotland and Ireland.
TNYO: How does this affect your work, inspire you - or possibly upset you?
Brad Marr: Living in Omaha allows me to work and live in an affordable and inspiring environment. In doing so, the result is that I can spend more time in the studio than worrying so much about the daily grind.
TNYO: Why do you paint - and what does art mean to you?
Brad Marr: I paint for a number of reasons, mainly I paint and create for the same reason that I breathe, so that I can live. Art to me is a way of communicating to the viewer in a way that I can understand. I sometimes find it challenging to communicate via word or mouth and the canvas and process of painting solves that for me.
TNYO: Can you tell us About your portrait series?
Brad Marr: My portrait series for a show in Nov of 2023 is called "The Tourist". It is based off of a series of volunteer sessions over the summer where I collected over 70 photographs of portraits and settled on 15 subjects. The basis of the show is to highlight the diverse collection of subjects that represent ourselves as tourists investigating earth during our short time here. There is also an existential component as I was concerned with and comforted by the feeling of finding self through free will, choice and personal responsibility.
TNYO: Please Brad can you tell us about your nature series and how you come about painting and expressing your art in series?
Brad Marr: My nature series is a collection of images that represent nature at different stages of their lives, a newly blossomed image or that of a decaying plant. It is important to show these stages of life as they are reflective of our own stages of life. This series also appeals to me because in nature, everything is harmonious and adapts and lives together in a natural setting and culture, something that we as humans have a hard time doing. It is the most honest representation of life. As for working in different series of works, I view it the same way that a musician focuses on different concepts for different albums. The style is the same but the subject and purpose are sometimes intertwined.
TNYO: Where will your art go in the future Brad?
Brad Marr: I am currently adding to the portrait and nature series and am working on integrating DNA into the portraits.
TNYO: Do you listen to music when you are working and if you do can you choose a song for our audience to listen to?
Brad Marr: I listen to music at all stages of the creative process. I build and stretch my own stretcher frames and canvases and will listen to Buena Vista Social Club or Nina Simone during the stage. When I am painting I usually listen to EDM music and like artists dusch as Nina Kraviz, Deborah de Luca or David August, and You Man. I also listen to jazz or something else when I am building and assembling the floater frames for the canvas, or working in the woodshop.
As for a song that I would suggest that is "Children" by Deborah de Luca, "Skyscapers" by Nina Kraviz or "Who we Are" by You Man. However I usually just play the 'radio' version of these artists anon Spotify.
"a day at the track" - acrylic on canvas - 36"x60" - 2004 - $1500
"headwrap" - acrylic on canvas - 36"x60" - 2004 - $1500
erica - acrylic and gold leaf on canvas
areli & emily - acrylic & gold leaf on canvas - 2023
Still Life
a still life (plural: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) while this is an inspiration for my still life series, i also pick subject matter that revolves around the idea of the beginnings or foundations of particular objects.
"the rebirth of disco" - acrylic on canvas - 36"x36" - 2022 - $1200
"grape on a string" - acrylic on canvas - 24"x36" - 2021 - sold
"brick" - acrylic and bronze leaf on canvas - 22"x24" - 2023 - $1000
"emergence" - acrylic on canvas - 20"x20" - 2022 - $750
The Nature Series
the nature series involves work that centers around the idea of the cycle of life, from birth to death, to rebirth, and so on…nature is also important to me as it is a true testament to honesty, self awareness and adaptation to survive. it is more honest and true than most people that i know
"astra" - acrylic and gold leaf on canvas - 48"x60" - 2023 - $3500
"astra - study" - acrylic and gold leaf on canvas - 18"x24" - 2023 - $750
"be" - acrylic and gold leaf on canvas - 48"x48" - 2022 -sold
"something found" - acrylic and silver leaf on canvas - 18"x24" - 2022 - $750
"cottonwood" - acrylic and bronze leaf on canvas - 24"x24" - 2022 - sold
"fallen leaf" - acrylic and gold leaf on canvas - 2021 - 36"48" - sold
"golden butterfly" - acrylic and gold leaf on canvas - 36"x48" - $1500
Interview With Artist
Brad Marr
Fine Art
https://www.instagram.com/bradmarrart/
https://www.bradmarr.com/contact
[email protected]
(402) 452-4230
Brad Marr
Fine Art
https://www.instagram.com/bradmarrart/
https://www.bradmarr.com/contact
[email protected]
(402) 452-4230