Today we’d like to introduce you to Pearl Bryant.
Pearl, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I grew up on the beautiful Gulf Coast and went to Auburn University where I earned my BFA in Studio Art with a focus in painting and drawing. I moved to Atlanta soon after. I quit making art for a few years while trying out different career paths. Then in 2015, I survived a traumatic accident, and with drastically reduced mobility, I started to focus on these abstract paintings I had been toying with. Out of that, my current series of work was born.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I paint, draw, doodle, sew, sculpt and more! I enjoy working in various media, although I have been almost exclusively working on a body of paintings for a couple years in my Happy Vacui series. They are bright, textural, time intensive mixed media paintings. I use acrylic, found objects, nail polish, makeup, ink and more. I cull inspiration from a mountain of sources, with everything from maximalism and horror vacui to consumerism, ecology and aesthetics. I don’t pre-plan any of my compositions and make each painting by continually adding and editing until it has reached a point I’m satisfied with. I hope people can enjoy the bursting compositions in my work, as well as appreciate the meticulous labor and time that goes into each piece.
What responsibility, if any, do you think artists have to use their art to help alleviate problems faced by others? Has your art been affected by issues you’ve concerned about?
I think artists are still tasked with innovating and presenting new ways of seeing and experiencing the world we exist in. Artists continue to initiate conversations in their communities as they have for generations. In my work, I try to spark a conversation about alternative media for art-making by reusing and repurposing found objects that would otherwise decay outside or go to landfill. I try to take forgotten, seemingly purposeless items and give them a new life exuding joy and beauty.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
Five of my Happy Vacui paintings are on loan to The Bakery in Southwest Atlanta, on view in the main lobby/ coffee shop area. A mural I painted last summer can be seen at The Bakery as well. I have some paintings up for sale on my website, with many more to come soon, as well as prints of my paintings available. People can shoot me a message through my website to coordinate purchases for now. I am also in search of opportunities to paint more murals, inside or out!
Contact Info:
- Website: pearlbryant.com
- Email: jpbryant88@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flossiepearl/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flossiepearl/
Image Credit:
Pearl Bryant
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