Brian Burt

It's always been difficult for me to answer the question "what type of painting do you do?" I was trained in college to be an illustrator. Then I served a three year apprenticeship based in classical realism. After that for six years I worked solely in the pastel medium and considered myself, a pastelist. My influences range from the French Academic master, Jean-Leon Gerome to the illustrator, Drew Struzan, and then back around to photorealistic grid paintings of Chuck Close. There are so many historical threads that make up the technique(s) that I use to complete my works that saying "I'm a classical realist" or "a trained illustrator" would simply not be accurate. If I was blunt, when asked, I would say "I try to paint briefly convincing lies." A playing card, by itself, is simply not that interesting. Put that same card in the hands of someone with the proper skills, that same ordinary card can flip, change appearances and even disappear. Through the deliberate use of technique and skill something ordinary has been made into something extraordinary, something magical. I would compare my work to what a magician does with a playing card. I take something benign and forgettable and through skill, I attempt to make you see that object in a brand new way. A way that is memorable, and if I've done it well enough, magical. 

 

* This statement has been provided directly by the artist in association to their 16^th International ARC Salon entries. This content has not been edited for typos or grammatical errors and has not been vetted for accuracy.