Kent Burress: Solo Exhibition
ArtUs Co presents a debut Solo Exhibition: Kent Burress
Opening Reception: Sat Jun 19, 2021 5-7 pm
June 19th – July 25th
ArtUs Co Gallery
10000 Research Blvd #118, Austin TX 78759
Kent is one of the ArtUs Co studio artists at the Arboretum in Austin, Texas. He has painted seriously for about a decade after a friend, knowing of his interest in painting, gave him six painting lessons at Laguna Gloria Art School. Those lessons nurtured a natural ability that he has continued to hone with private lessons, several workshops and a lot of practice. Other than that bit of excellent training, he is a self-taught artist.
About Kent
Kent grew up on a large farm in Central Texas, then spent many years along the Pacific Coast in California before returning to Austin. Those years instilled a lasting love for nature, wide open spaces and adventure. In his paintings he uses oils to capture those big skies and broad vistas in a style that often pushes the boundaries between representational and abstract art. At times those boundaries get ignored completely.
Kent loves to travel and is almost always up for a good adventure. A dear teacher from his childhood recently asked after seeing one of his Australia paintings, “When you were a little boy did you ever dream of such adventures?” He still does dream of adventures, he still explores the world, he is still filled with that little boy wonder. Those adventures and that wonder make their way into the paintings he creates.
Artist Statement:
“I want you to engage with my work, not just look at it. Most of my paintings have a story, but those stories are part of my life. I want to know what stories my paintings evoke in you. What emotion or feeling wells up when you interact with a painting? I try to leave enough space in a finished painting for the viewer to become part of the painting. Novelist Chimamanda Adichie once said ‘.. when we realize that there is never a single story about any place, we regain a kind of paradise.’ I like that a lot. For me, there is never a single story that a painting holds.”
