Finding Solace

Renee Brown was the Second Prize Winner in International Artist magazine’s Challenge No. 128, Favorite Subjects.

Renee Brown often finds inspiration in the gentle tranquility of nature, especially birds. Growing up in a rural area, the artist found herself more emotionally connected to her surroundings, and this translated to a love of art—especially art that incorporates elements of nature. Artist Renee Brown in her studio.

“The environments I paint reference how I’m feeling at that moment and my mental health,” Brown reflects. “My painting titled Guarded was created as a means for me to find peace, acceptance and tranquility. I’ve struggled with an eating disorder since childhood and this painting is a way to accept my truth and be open about it.” In the painting, a nude woman lays on a bed of grass in a fetal position as golden eagles surround her, close enough to count their feathers. “I went into this painting knowing it needed to feel venerable and dramatic. It had to be a self-portrait but also anonymous. I didn’t want there to be any eye contact with the viewer or to look particularly like one person. It should also feel like the viewer is looking down into the scene. As the tall grass starts to swallow the figure, golden eagles are swooping in, surrounding the figure. Their gigantic wings create walls that shield me from the outside while also allowing me to hide.”Guarded, oil on canvas, 36 x 36"

On the Horizon, oil on canvas, 36 x 24"

Her oil and gold leaf-on-canvas Winter Solstice is about reflection, Brown says. “The night sky is something that fascinates me. It’s so monumental in scale, making me feel so insignificant in the grand scheme of it all. I love stargazing for that reason…Shortly before this piece, I did a study of hands that overlap and intertwine. It intrigued me so I thought it would be fun to use in a painting…The gold leaf was something I was using at my job at the time. I loved how it worked in other pieces of art and wanted to try it on my own. This was also the first time I introduced the birds back into my work in years.”Winter Solstice, oil and gold leaf on canvas, 27½ x 27½"Brown is a New York-based emerging artist working in photorealism. She earned her BFA at the Hartford Art School at the University of Hartford in Connecticut and has received numerous accolades since then, including first and second place in the Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery exhibition. Brown continues to exhibit her work across the East Coast. —