About Berly Brown

kberlybrown@gmail.com

Emerging from the impression that objects, flora, fauna, and even ideas, feelings, and places have metaphysical essences and wills of their own, I examine how paint can describe multidimensional stimuli: the fleeting moment when the clouds shift and take on the shape of an animal or face peering back at me; a sensation of glitching pixels when the breeze enlivens the tree leaves; how cascading light in the magic hours of the day warms my skin or suggests a presence or entity; the curious feeling that an unseen force is gently guiding my actions andattention. 

I entertain the idea that these coincidences are intended just for me and wonder about their purpose and where they may come from: God? A playful ghost or grumpy spirit? The clouds or trees themselves? Is there a “higher” version of me, nudging me towards programmed algorithms in a simulated reality, much like a video game?

I search for and record—through abstract form—moments of enchantment in the world around me as a means of processing persistent feelings of loneliness, isolation, and the malaise of everyday life. Through a process that might begin with analog and digital drawings and collages or by reworking past failed paintings or experiments, I layer multiple paint materials ranging from liquid veils of gloss polymer to thick, sculptural masses of oil and acrylic, textured fillers, and glass beads in various sizes. The glass beads animate other compositional elements and reflect light, offering dazzling and sometimes surprising effects.