STEPHANIE BRITT – Artist Statement
Southwest, Pacific Northwest and Hawaii Fine Artist
ABOUT:
Stephanie Britt’s interest in abstract art began while studying painting, color and design at Ringling College of Art and Design with Professor Bruce Gregory, a student of famed French cubist Fernand Leger. This introduction opened the door to further interest and study of other influential artists and movements of the time including Bracque, Mondrian, Cezanne, Cubism and Futurism.
Although different stylistically, later studies with contemporary figurative artist Zhaoming Wu and noted portrait artist Daniel Greene further influenced Stephanie’s work.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT:
Inspired by the work of certain early 20th century artists and a lifelong fascination with sequential art, my work seeks to convey an impression of a constantly shifting environment even at the smallest level while maintaining the integrity or recognizability of the subject .
After the initial analysis of the basic structure or theme, the subject is distilled to its essence and the work is then gradually re-assembled (with attention to balance and lead-the-eye movement) to reflect the emerging new relationships within the picture plane, achieved through an awareness of the interplay of color, contrast and form.
The use of contrast is the most valuable discipline in my painting. The search for contrast of every sort, whether value, texture, pattern or color is what drives my painting and even extends to the relationships between elements within the picture plane; positive/negative, analogous/complementary and energetic/serene.
Establishing a sense of movement within a painting is another primary consideration. As a book illustrator, I was a sequential artist for a number of years. As I moved exclusively into fine art painting, I continued to employ the concept of sequential art in painting as I drew upon my early inspiration with the analytic phase of cubism and futurism. I identified with the way certain early twentieth artists responded to their environment, a world of constant motion enhanced by innovation. I strive to comprehend and to translate my own world of movement and change, to “synthesize the impressions of the world” as the Salon Cubists did, and in doing so, create in my work a sense of tension and aesthetic balance.
