John Brosio (born 1967) is an American painter whose works focuses on the relationships between humans and nature.

John Brosio
Born1967 (age 56–57)
NationalityAmerican
EducationUniversity of California, Davis BFA (1991)
Known forSurrealist paintings of human relations with nature
Notable workFatigue 2
StyleSurrealism, oil painting
Websitejohnbrosio.com

Early life and education

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Brosio was born in 1967, in South Pasadena, California.[1] He studied art at Art Center College of Design under Richard Bunkall, Ray Turner, and David Limrite,[2] and the University of California, Davis under Wayne Thiebaud, David Hollowell and Robert Arneson,[3] and earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1991.[4]

After education, he worked as an intern at Lucasfilm Industrial Light & Magic company's Creature Shop in San Rafael from February to May 1990.[5][6]

Artistic style

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His paintings largely deal with the small scale and relationship of humanity (represented in images of suburbia and brides for example)[7][8] in contrast to the enormity of nature, such as against natural disasters like tornadoes,[9] as well as cosmology, particularly the Holographic Principle, resulting in a surreal style.[10] He first came to understand the relationship of humanity and nature through research and storm chasing through Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas for three seasons.[3] His work has been described as "anxious realism",[11] with a focus on spectacle and the contrast between beauty and disaster.[2][12]

Brosio's process involves utilizing references from things such as photographs and videos, creating thumbnails, and synthesizing the material into a final work.[4] He utilizes oil paints in his paintings, and his palette is largely inspired by Wayne Thiebaud.[13] Brosio uses bristle filbert brushes extensively on canvas, and also board. He uses Winsor & Newton paints, as well as paints from Old Holland. He coats his paintings with Galkyd Lite (from Gamblin) mixed with a cold wax medium often, or a Gamvar varnish.[14]

Works

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Brosio's exhibitions include the solo show of his tornado paintings at the National Academy of Sciences Museum by the Cultural Programs of the National Academy of Sciences opening in October of 2008 and closing in January of 2009,[15][16][4] as well as exhibitions at Sue Greenwood Fine Art gallery,[17][18] Arcadia Contemporary galleries in California and New York,[3][19] the John Natsoulas Gallery,[20] the Castelli Art Space,[21] the Thinkspace Gallery in Culver City,[22] La Luz de Jesus gallery,[23] the Clement C. Maxwell Library at Bridgewater State University,[24] the Grunwald Gallery of Art at the Indiana University Bloomington,[25] and the Laguna College of Art and Design (LCAD) Gallery.[26] Brosio's artwork was additionally shown at the LA Art Show in 2016 through an Arcadia booth, where he sold two paintings to J.J. Abrams.[27] His work has also been collected by Mike Mignola, Dave Grohl, and Norman Lear.[10][28]

His artwork was featured on the cover of the 2021 album Mammoth WVH, named Fatigue 2,[29] displaying a large crab terrorizing a city.[30] The meaning of the subject of the painting generated discussion over Twitter.[31] Fatigue 2 was also the cover image of "Songs of Profit, Songs of Loss: Private Equity, Wealth, and Inequality" by Daniel Scott Souleles.[29]

He has served as an instructor of MFA art classes in painting and drawing[32][33][34][35] and as a mentor for the MFA program at the Laguna College of Art and Design.[36] He has also worked as a Visual Arts Chair at Idyllwild Arts Academy.[32]

References

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  1. ^ "John Brosio | Biography". www.mutualart.com. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  2. ^ a b Gangelhoff, Bonnie (1 January 2003). "John Brosio | A Terrible Beauty". Southwest Art Magazine. Peak Media Properties. Southwest Art.
  3. ^ a b c "JOHN BROSIO". arcadiacontemporary.com. Arcadia Contemporary.
  4. ^ a b c Galloway, Gerald E.; Boesch, Donald F.; Twilley, Robert R. (2009). "Restoring and Protecting Coastal Louisiana". Issues in Science and Technology. 25 (2): 31. ISSN 0748-5492. JSTOR 43314823.
  5. ^ Wood, Antrese. "The Creative Process and the Artist's Responsibility, with John Brosio". savvypainter.com. Savvy Painter.
  6. ^ Wilkins, Jonathan (8 August 2017). The Best of Star Wars Insider Volume 6: Heroes of the Force. Titan Comics. p. 93. ISBN 978-1-78585-600-6.
  7. ^ "Virtual Commons - Bridgewater State University". Bridgewater Magazine. 24 (1): 21. Spring 2014.
  8. ^ "John Brosio". Beinart Gallery.
  9. ^ "John Brosio". www.cpnas.org. National Academy of Sciences.
  10. ^ a b "John Brosio. American games". Meer. 23 February 2024.
  11. ^ Bodio, Stephen (6 February 2024). "Two Earthlings". stephenbodio.com.
  12. ^ Dorsey, Dave (7 March 2024). "Take shelter". represent.
  13. ^ Seed, John (18 December 2012). "Incredible Images Of Tornadoes". HuffPost.
  14. ^ Sanders, Jessica Lee (13 January 2017). "Artist Interview :: John Brosio". pastimesinc.com. Pastimes For a Lifetime Art and Piano School.
  15. ^ "John Brosio". Colección Solo.
  16. ^ "Front Matter". Issues in Science and Technology. 25 (1): 24. 2008. ISSN 0748-5492. JSTOR 43314751.
  17. ^ Delp, Laurel (29 December 2009). "Wanderings: Laguna Beach". Western Art & Architecture. Western Art & Architecture Magazine.
  18. ^ "Orange Coast". Orange Coast Magazine. October 2006. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  19. ^ Today, Fine Art (20 February 2024). "Art Exhibition > John Brosio: American Games". Fine Art Connoisseur.
  20. ^ "Unreal: Art of Painting in the 21st Century". John Natsoulas Gallery.
  21. ^ Blum, Janice Bremec. "BREAKING ART NEWS!!! 11.29.17 The PINK Pop-Up Art Show at Castelli's: A chat with co-curator/artist William Wray – Pink, It's not just for girls anymore | Tribela Magazine". Tribela Magazine.
  22. ^ "'Wild At Heart - Keep Wildlife In The Wild'" (PDF). thinkspace.
  23. ^ "John Brosio – String Theory". La Luz de Jesus Gallery. 31 July 2014.
  24. ^ "Twist and Shout: The Paintings of John Brosio". Bridgewater State University Art Exhibits. Bridgewater State University. 21 January 2014.
  25. ^ "Slow Hand: 2015: Archive: Grunwald Gallery: Exhibitions: Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design: Indiana University Bloomington". Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design. Indiana University Bloomington.
  26. ^ Stone, Marrie. "Artists John Brosio and Perin Mahler chronicle Parallel Disasters at the LCAD Gallery". www.stunewslaguna.com. Stu News Laguna.
  27. ^ Trujillo, Marc (11 February 2016). "Marc Trujillo: 2016 LA Art Show Notes". Cartwheel Art.
  28. ^ Spini, Laura (11 January 2014). "Dinosauri contro la recessione". Vice (in Italian).
  29. ^ a b Souleles, Daniel Scott (1 June 2019). Songs of Profit, Songs of Loss: Private Equity, Wealth, and Inequality. U of Nebraska Press. ISBN 978-1-4962-1542-0.
  30. ^ Ruggieri, Melissa (7 August 2023). "Wolfgang Van Halen on recording new album in dad's studio: 'Feels like a rite of passage'". USA TODAY. Maribel Perez Wadsworth. USA TODAY.
  31. ^ DiVita, Joe (May 26, 2021). "WVH Has Best Responses to Questions About Huge Crab on Solo Album". Loudwire. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  32. ^ a b "Students experience art in the wilds of Idyllwild". Orange County Register. Freedom Communications. 13 July 2013.
  33. ^ McCarron, Ryan (30 July 2023). "Artist Appreciation (John Brosio)". Where Creativity Works. The Art Department at Marywood University.
  34. ^ "Painting MFA". LCAD. Laguna College of Art and Design.
  35. ^ "Drawing MFA". LCAD. Laguna College of Art and Design.
  36. ^ Christiansen, Trevor. "LCAD MFA Thesis Guide--Fall 2011" (PDF). myLCAD. Laguna College of Art & Design.