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Trenton Brann - Curatorial Rationale
As a young man who is an aspiring artist, the support I needed was once very minimal and unseen by many of my surrounding elders. Being an artist to them was like something that children do to develop their creative skills and support their interests. Art was not seen in their eyes as something that could keep me financially stable and support my lifestyle. Speaking with my extended family about what I wanted to do in my future, I never got immediate support; there was always a rebuttal that came off as condensing. It made me feel lesser than my peers who all wanted to be in the medical field, athletes, and engineers, which was useful or entertaining in their eyes. Forcing myself to play sports and do things I never had an interest in, just to fit in, I felt like the white crayon in the box. With the upcoming of younger and older generations being in more creative jobs that were once overlooked by many generations, it gave me the confidence to feel useful in the new world and produce art that expressed my emotional past of feeling alone.
Art has always been my best friend and an emotional escape. I always knew that art would be involved in my life because it made me feel like I had a voice in the world. Art was something that I used to escape reality and make myself lively when I was feeling down or vocal, from Rainbow Loom, Perler Beads, puppet making, and duct tape wallets. Because of the societal standards, I never really shared the same interest as the average boy because they were all athletic. I was the quiet kid who just wanted to create art with a powerful message; that all could learn from, specifically the young men who were like me. I’ve always had an eye for color and the layout of pieces; then, I started exploring more into the fine arts, paying attention to technique, quality, and time. How could I project my message to the young men who weren’t being accepted, along with the other children who were afraid of being themselves? I began to find ways to create pieces that express topics I felt strongly about: Toxic Masculinity, Climate Change, and Mental Health struggles among children. I wanted to make something that would instead catch people’s eye instead of turning them away because it seemed to look like bad news; I did so by using color. Creating meaningful art with a message I wanted everyone to receive was the door to my confidence that I had never experienced before; I helped myself while in the creative process. Once I transitioned into my second year of IB Visual Arts, I furthered my skills in creating purposeful art for young children.
Throughout the past two years of taking IB Visual Arts, I knew how to make art the future. By visualizing overlooked worldly issues through my art, such as mental health, societal standards, and rapid maturing, I wanted all who see this to feel as if we are struggling together. I wanted all to feel apart no matter if they were the bully (even unintentionally) supporting these standards or if they were the victim of these standards. I wanted to display the chaotic process of finding a way to make this art by randomly placing the works of art to show various stories one can connect and identify. There are so many ways to tell a story, but I chose art. Some people have the same passion for the topics as I do, or some don't know any; I want you to take this time to think about how words matter, how actions matter, and figure out how we can all help each other. How can we overcome these obsolete worldly problems together as a community?
Trenton Brann
1100 Watts of Happiness (December 2020)
Spray Paint, Mixed Media
23.5” x 12” x 15”
This piece was a tribute to my own unpredictable and child-like mindset. I’m known to have a child's personality because of my consistent playful and kind persona. I created this sculpture to be a box of happiness, bringing children's joy to life with bright colors, toys, etc. The microwave is a found object representing the symbolic radiation of happiness (micro radiation) it will put out into the world. Open it up and bless your eyes with freshly cooked happiness.
Trenton Brann
What's Your Dream? (November 2020)
Steel Wire, Air Dry Clay, Mixed Media
15.5” x 9.5” x 4”
Every child's dream is to have superpowers. I wanted to reflect on one I always wanted: to fly with the birds and sit on the clouds to watch the world’s people go by. The included media represents childhood behavior and emotional connections to childhood dreams. The sitting wire figure is surrounded by items representing the message "What's your DREAM." I want everyone to dream big, reach for the stars, and never give up. BE determined and stick up for what you believe is possible.
Trenton Brann
Spaced Out (October 2019)
Oil Pastel
15” x 10”
This piece was to reflect my zodiac sign, a Gemini, which I heavily identify with. Astrology has been a recent interest of mine, and I wanted to showcase that through this piece. I find myself always dreaming of things that would only happen in a fairytale and get lost in my thoughts. When in these deep thoughts, I find it comforting that I am by myself with only my endless thoughts and endless ideas.
Trenton Brann
Dynamic Quartet (December 2019)
Acrylic Paint
2.5’ x 2.5’
In this piece, I was exploring a new style of painting, realism. It was a still-life painting made over one month with inspiration from well-known artist Dina Brodsky. Dina Brodsky was an inspiration to me for this painting because of her short strokes and vivid colors. Though she tends to do smaller pieces, I wanted to incorporate some of her techniques into my artwork.
Trenton Brann
Humanicorn Duck (January 2020)
Ceramic
14” x 16” x 8.5”
This Hybrid Ceramic Sculpture of a Human, Duck, and a Unicorn was a piece I made in my first ever class of ceramics. I wanted to create something that truly depicts what goes on through myself as a young person who always thinks far out of the box. I chose two random animals, the unicorn, to represent my creativity and wild-like attitude and a duck to describe the term sitting duck. The phrase sitting duck means being an easy target as a young black man in the United States.
Trenton Brann
Big Fan (April 2020)
Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop
8.5”x 11”
Renewable Energy is in the works of becoming the new way the world runs. I wanted d to bring attention to the global warming crisis thats been shunned for too many years. It was meant to appeal to others and help them understand the tremendous benefits of renewable energy. Vibrant colors were a way to catch people’s attention and make them want to know more. Using settings from around the world, from cities, valleys, mountains, and oceans, I want all to know they can benefit from renewable energy.
Trenton Brann
Hard Truth (March 2020)
Acrylic Paint, Mixed Media
6” x 6” x 10"
This piece was made to bring up the problem of toxic masculinity in today's society. The right shoe represents the expectations that society has for young men. They force us to play sports and don't allow us to express emotion. They try to silence us with phrases such as, "Boys don't cry." The Left shoe represents a life that some young men want to live but can't because of societal boundaries that hold us from coming out of our shells. It doesn't allow the development of creative minds.
Trenton Brann
Art Night (January 2020)
Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop
8.5” x 11”
This piece was made for a contest I entered in my first semester of graphic design. I wanted this piece to reflect Huron High Schools' strong art program through a bold message, bright colors, and creative design. Coming up with such an original idea was challenging because of the time and effort it takes to do so. When making this, I focused on what I wanted and visualized it in my head while also using the skills I learned throughout the weeks of using the program.
Trenton Brann
Say No to Temptation (February 2021)
Mixed Media
15” x 9.5”
The temptation is hard to overcome at age, no matter if you’re saying no to sugar, television, or bad habits. I wanted to visualize that in a new way in which all could understand. Children often go through a rebellious stage and have no consciousness of what’s right and wrong. I displayed that by using a Gumby Doll, stealing cookies from a cookie jar with his good and lousy consciousness on his sides. By doing so, I was able to complete the message of “Saying No To Temptation.”
Trenton Brann
DOE Their (January 2021)
Ceramic
13” x 10” x 4”
Ceramic sculptures are a way to practice perspective, being able to use my hands and create something that is a breath away from being real takes time, and patients. When creating this deer I wanted it to be a representation of my skill as an artist; I wanted to showcase my unconditional love for sculpting. I had to think back to the skills and knowledge I’ve retained from a previous ceramics class and put them to use. Being able to use my Humanicorn Duck sculpture as inspiration and motivation.
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