March 2020 Featured Artist
New York-Based Acclaimed Artist
Pennie Brantley
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Pennie's Painting "Depth of Perception"
(Pitigliano, Italy) |
Pennie Brantley is inspired by both literal and psychological journeys. Her large, intense oil paintings use images from her travels to elucidate universalities of the human condition that transcend geographical territories. Having lived in Buenos Aires, Toronto, St. Louis, and Boston, the Missouri native now has a home and studio in the mountains of New York with her artist husband, Robert Morgan.
Singled out by the Boston Phoenix journal as an “art world luminary,” Pennie has had an active career for forty years, exhibiting in museums, art centers and galleries. Among these are the prestigious Hyde Collection Museum, Boston Center for the Arts, National Arts Club in NYC, Paul Robeson Cultural Center at Penn State University, and the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City. Her work has been selected for important exhibitions by distinguished curators, including Director of the Guggenheim, Richard Armstrong; Director of the Andy Warhol Museum, Eric Shiner; and Director of Curatorial Affairs of the Frick Museum, Sarah Hall. Elected to the National Association of Women Artists based in NYC, Pennie has received many honors for her paintings, including the Leibowitz Award, NYC, and was awarded a grant from the NY Foundation for the Arts (NYFA). Her work was featured in educational traveling exhibitions sponsored by the Evansville Museum of Art in Indiana and a University of Missouri survey, “Important Missouri Women Artists.” |
Berkshire Fine Arts publisher/former ARTnews critic Charles Giuliano described her art as “powerful and lush.” Boston Globe’s Cate McQuaid referred to Pennie’s paintings as having “a mythic quality, as if …beckoning us from the light into the darkness of our psyches.” In artsMEDIA magazine, Christopher Millis defined her art as “an intensely personal, highly developed vision of the nature of our constructed world…sharply hopeful…with a sense of movement while all is still, a sense of the infinite within a confined space.”
Pennie spent a three-year sabbatical in Argentina after working tirelessly in the art communities of Boston and St. Louis to improve conditions and opportunities for other artists. In 2015, the arts council of her hometown honored her with a huge retrospective. Written about in over 90 articles and reviews in newspapers and magazines, she is also represented in numerous exhibition catalogs and has been interviewed for educational television.
Pennie spent a three-year sabbatical in Argentina after working tirelessly in the art communities of Boston and St. Louis to improve conditions and opportunities for other artists. In 2015, the arts council of her hometown honored her with a huge retrospective. Written about in over 90 articles and reviews in newspapers and magazines, she is also represented in numerous exhibition catalogs and has been interviewed for educational television.
Sacred Duty
(Palais des Papes, Avignon) Oil on Canvas - 48 X 72 inches © Pennie Brantley |
Morning Fog
(Orvieto) Oil on Canvas - 48 X 72 inches © Pennie Brantley |
Feeding Vincent
(Kitchen of Van Gogh's Asylum: Saint-Paul de Mausole, France) Oil on Canvas - 36 X 48 inches © Pennie Brantley |
Ethnic Cleansing
Oil on Canvas - 22 X 28 inches © Pennie Brantley |
Pennie describes her inspirations, her travels and the work she has done to improve her community.
How has the inspiration behind your work changed over the years?
How you develop as an artist parallels how you develop as a person. My innate certainty that I was born an artist was equal to my awareness of being born female. Knowing I was a painter, although I had done very little painting, I hit 20 needing to reckon with what that really meant for my life. It was scary. I have NEVER thought of art as a commodity and knew I didn’t just want to make pretty pictures. They had to mean something that others could relate to.
The earliest paintings were a sincere effort of my fledgling artist self. They all contain mystery and thought provocation, using invented representational composition. An inner voice was trying to express something spiritual.
An opportunity arrived for me to travel abroad which fed my long-held fascination with the globe. I fell in love with the world, which led to my painting specific places to exalt them and share the amazing accomplishments of humans. I snap tourist photos to capture these experiences and work from them to draw on the canvas. There is a symbiosis between my eyes and my heart that tells me which image I must paint. I do not consciously choose them; they choose me.
At first, the paintings conveyed joy and awe with vivid colors that buzzed with brightness. Unfortunately, an unforeseen difficult situation turned my life very dark and influenced the coloration of my work. I painted a number of stalwart structures that were timeless and beautiful while simultaneously intimidating. Willfully overcoming hardship, I gradually embraced light over darkness wherever I found it, using it to represent triumph. It was deeply gratifying that when these were exhibited, many people got in touch with me to say they saw the hope in the paintings and it helped them get through bad times.
Gradually, good things happened! With a very happy marriage to a talented artist and wonderful man, I am free to paint what my soul tells me to about the wonders of life and all that we share no matter where we happen to be born.
Looking outward, trying to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves, I am now working on a dozen paintings in a series called “Echoes of their Voices.” They are images from a visit to the Gestapo prison at Terezin, Czech Republic, north of Prague. The empty spaces are so haunting, and I was compelled to paint them in honor of and with compassion for those who suffered there. I hope to bring more awareness of this horrible history that is becoming lost to new generations.
How you develop as an artist parallels how you develop as a person. My innate certainty that I was born an artist was equal to my awareness of being born female. Knowing I was a painter, although I had done very little painting, I hit 20 needing to reckon with what that really meant for my life. It was scary. I have NEVER thought of art as a commodity and knew I didn’t just want to make pretty pictures. They had to mean something that others could relate to.
The earliest paintings were a sincere effort of my fledgling artist self. They all contain mystery and thought provocation, using invented representational composition. An inner voice was trying to express something spiritual.
An opportunity arrived for me to travel abroad which fed my long-held fascination with the globe. I fell in love with the world, which led to my painting specific places to exalt them and share the amazing accomplishments of humans. I snap tourist photos to capture these experiences and work from them to draw on the canvas. There is a symbiosis between my eyes and my heart that tells me which image I must paint. I do not consciously choose them; they choose me.
At first, the paintings conveyed joy and awe with vivid colors that buzzed with brightness. Unfortunately, an unforeseen difficult situation turned my life very dark and influenced the coloration of my work. I painted a number of stalwart structures that were timeless and beautiful while simultaneously intimidating. Willfully overcoming hardship, I gradually embraced light over darkness wherever I found it, using it to represent triumph. It was deeply gratifying that when these were exhibited, many people got in touch with me to say they saw the hope in the paintings and it helped them get through bad times.
Gradually, good things happened! With a very happy marriage to a talented artist and wonderful man, I am free to paint what my soul tells me to about the wonders of life and all that we share no matter where we happen to be born.
Looking outward, trying to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves, I am now working on a dozen paintings in a series called “Echoes of their Voices.” They are images from a visit to the Gestapo prison at Terezin, Czech Republic, north of Prague. The empty spaces are so haunting, and I was compelled to paint them in honor of and with compassion for those who suffered there. I hope to bring more awareness of this horrible history that is becoming lost to new generations.
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"My paintings take about 6 months to a year and a half of work to complete. It would be impossible to do them on site, both for the length of time they take and that they are normally about six feet." 
Path to Knowledge
(Palacio Nacional de Sintra, Portugal) Oil on Canvas - 48 X 60 inches © Pennie Brantley |
Intent
(L'Escalier, Paris) Oil on Canvas - 72 X 36 inches © Pennie Brantley |
Your attention to detail and use of light is stunning. Has your work always presented a keen attention to light/shadowing? What do you hope the viewer takes away?
I push extremes of light and dark in my paintings for visceral response. I work with oils, and - for every image - I mix a range on my palette of the lightest to darkest shades within a particular color. It helps create drama visually. I particularly started emphasizing pure white light when I was painting about darkness of the soul, which was the subtitle and subtext of my solo exhibition, Tenebre Spirituali, in Boston. The intense light symbolizes ascendance, which a number of my paintings are specifically about. My art aspires to be relatable to anyone regardless of geographical boundaries, politics, religion or language.
I push extremes of light and dark in my paintings for visceral response. I work with oils, and - for every image - I mix a range on my palette of the lightest to darkest shades within a particular color. It helps create drama visually. I particularly started emphasizing pure white light when I was painting about darkness of the soul, which was the subtitle and subtext of my solo exhibition, Tenebre Spirituali, in Boston. The intense light symbolizes ascendance, which a number of my paintings are specifically about. My art aspires to be relatable to anyone regardless of geographical boundaries, politics, religion or language.
Passageway
(Paraza, France) Oil on Board - 16 X 12 inches © Pennie Brantley |
Triumph
(Sarlat-la-Canéda, France) Oil on Canvas - 42 X 60 inches © Pennie Brantley |
Do you have a favorite artist whose work has inspired you?
Two of my favorites, although seemingly quite different from me, are Kandinsky and Van Gogh. It was astounding to read Kandinsky’s “Concerning the Spiritual in Art” many years ago and totally identify with what he was saying. Very early, just wanting to learn to paint well, I looked at Durer, Dali and O’Keeffe. No one can tell you how to do it; you must figure out what is right for you. Of course, I admired the Old Masters, but they were of another era.
A profound pleasure for my husband, Bob, and me is making pilgrimages to important places in the lives of artists we admire. For instance, it was deeply moving to trace Van Gogh’s steps at the asylum near St.-Remy-de-Provence where he committed himself; his home in Nuenen, where he painted his first masterpiece, “The Potato Eaters;” many sites where he lived and painted; the room he died in at Auvers-sur-Oise and the graves of Vincent and his brother Theo nearby.
We’ve visited the homes or studios of some of the world’s greatest artists – Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Rubens, Renoir, Dali, Picasso, Cezanne, Monet, Magritte, Delvaux, Delacroix, Hundertwasser, Saint-Gaudens, Grant Wood and Norman Rockwell.
Two of my favorites, although seemingly quite different from me, are Kandinsky and Van Gogh. It was astounding to read Kandinsky’s “Concerning the Spiritual in Art” many years ago and totally identify with what he was saying. Very early, just wanting to learn to paint well, I looked at Durer, Dali and O’Keeffe. No one can tell you how to do it; you must figure out what is right for you. Of course, I admired the Old Masters, but they were of another era.
A profound pleasure for my husband, Bob, and me is making pilgrimages to important places in the lives of artists we admire. For instance, it was deeply moving to trace Van Gogh’s steps at the asylum near St.-Remy-de-Provence where he committed himself; his home in Nuenen, where he painted his first masterpiece, “The Potato Eaters;” many sites where he lived and painted; the room he died in at Auvers-sur-Oise and the graves of Vincent and his brother Theo nearby.
We’ve visited the homes or studios of some of the world’s greatest artists – Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Rubens, Renoir, Dali, Picasso, Cezanne, Monet, Magritte, Delvaux, Delacroix, Hundertwasser, Saint-Gaudens, Grant Wood and Norman Rockwell.
Protecting Our Inner Selves from Encroachment
(Berlin Greenhouse) Oil on Canvas - 48 X 72 inches © Pennie Brantley |
An Abundance of Options
(Arrival in Venice) Oil on Canvas - 36 X 60 inches © Pennie Brantley |
Tell me about your work in the community.
When I lived in St. Louis years ago, I became very active in the art community. Involvement of serious artists is imperative to ensure the highest level of presentation of art. I was on the boards of Women’s Caucus for Art and the St. Louis Artists’ Guild, chairing the Executive, Exhibition, Program and other committees. I originated and carried out projects such as bringing Janet Fish for a huge exhibition of her work at the guild and her artist talk at the St. Louis Art Museum. I also created and coordinated the ground-breaking exhibition “St. Louis Artists Today” with its curator from the art museum.
After moving to Boston, I served in several capacities for the AIDS Action Committee’s bi-annual auction, ARTcetera. When I was the acquisitions administrator, we raised record-breaking funds, and all of the money raised went to AIDS patients - $600,000! I also donated one of my paintings which fetched the highest price in ARTcetera’s history.
I’ve participated in panel discussions, juries and gallery talks, and I’ve organized poetry slams and initiated the First Friday openings in the arts district of SOWA in Boston.
Where do you find sanctuary?
Everything is always right with the world when I am painting. It is also uplifting to have my husband come to my studio at the end of the day - a mini corner which I’ve jokingly deemed my “hospitality suite” - to discuss art and what we are working on.
Simply being at our home in the mountains is sanctuary as well as traveling to other cultures and exploring the magnificent ways that people have made astonishing worlds for themselves.
When I lived in St. Louis years ago, I became very active in the art community. Involvement of serious artists is imperative to ensure the highest level of presentation of art. I was on the boards of Women’s Caucus for Art and the St. Louis Artists’ Guild, chairing the Executive, Exhibition, Program and other committees. I originated and carried out projects such as bringing Janet Fish for a huge exhibition of her work at the guild and her artist talk at the St. Louis Art Museum. I also created and coordinated the ground-breaking exhibition “St. Louis Artists Today” with its curator from the art museum.
After moving to Boston, I served in several capacities for the AIDS Action Committee’s bi-annual auction, ARTcetera. When I was the acquisitions administrator, we raised record-breaking funds, and all of the money raised went to AIDS patients - $600,000! I also donated one of my paintings which fetched the highest price in ARTcetera’s history.
I’ve participated in panel discussions, juries and gallery talks, and I’ve organized poetry slams and initiated the First Friday openings in the arts district of SOWA in Boston.
Where do you find sanctuary?
Everything is always right with the world when I am painting. It is also uplifting to have my husband come to my studio at the end of the day - a mini corner which I’ve jokingly deemed my “hospitality suite” - to discuss art and what we are working on.
Simply being at our home in the mountains is sanctuary as well as traveling to other cultures and exploring the magnificent ways that people have made astonishing worlds for themselves.
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Upcoming Exhibitions:
DUALITIES Real Eyes Gallery 71 Park Street Adams, MA Paintings by artist couple Pennie Brantley & Robert Morgan September 5 – 26, 2020 Reception: September 5: 4-7 pm Gallery Talk: September 19: 5 pm ECHOES OF THEIR VOICES
The Gestapo Prison Project Paintings by Pennie Brantley 2021 Exhibitions and Gallery Talks DATES AND VENUES TBA |
