This body of work began by reconstructing observed moods and attitudes through painting. The works have themes surrounding cliches, queerness, affect and orientation. The paintings utilize text, saturated colors and everyday imagery; these components are chosen for their immediacy in affecting and building mood. Spatially the subjects in the work are layered in ways that do not align with a physical space, but rather represent them in a space of interiority or a glimpse into a moment of cognition.
Brendan Shea (b.1995 Massachusetts) Is an artist whose work explores popular sentiment, affect and mechanisms of painting. Brendan received his BFA in painting from Maine College of Art in 2018. Currently, he is an MFA candidate at the University of Texas at Austin, where he is a recipient of the David Bruton Jr. Endowment Graduate Fellowship. Brendan has attended residencies at the Pace House and Hewnoaks. He has exhibited work across the U.S., including Ortega Y Gasset Projects (NYC), Visual Arts Center (Austin, TX.), Grant Wahlquist Gallery (Portland, Me.), B.U. Gallery (Boston, MA.), Good Luck Have Fun (Austin, TX.), SaveArtSpace (Los Angeles, CA.), Able Baker Contemporary (Portland, Me.), SOIL Gallery (Seattle, Washington), and SPACE Gallery (Portland ME.).
