2020 Exhibition

Brent Millar: After the Rain

 

Imagine having synaesthesia and experiencing Brent’s paintings. What sounds, smells and tastes would you perceive; the buzzing of bees, the sound of laughter, the perfume of blossom, the splash of water in the fish pond, the smell of fresh coffee?

 
All the joyful things that life has to offer; truthful experiences re-presented. An antidote to the toxins of solipsism, cynicism and irony. A Mandala for the 21st century. The painter’s touch communicates unconsciously like body language revealing more truth than words.
 
Brent’s manipulation of paint has the capacity to “transcribe the adventures of the optic nerve” (Bonnard) Van Gogh wanted to provide consolation through art “art is to console those who are broken by life”. Balthus’s view was that painting had been ruined by pretension. Brent’s paintings are never pretentious and always consoling. There is a serious playfulness at work which requires significant skill to convey sensations and feeling. Francis Bacon described painting “unlocking the valves of feeling”. These paintings profess a return to the senses, an affirmation of goodness.
 
Henry Kondracki RSA