'Artists can transport the viewer to another space and time a magical world where anything is possible. In so doing, we alleviate the drudgery of the mundane.'
Teresa Brutcher is a USA born artist now residing in Pontevedra, Spain. Her figurative realist paintings explore subjects regarding human emotions and societal themes. Her figures can often be part of a surreal scenario, presenting deeper meanings in playful and colourful depictions.
Where is your current studio? What would be your dream studio?
My husband built my studio on our property. It is about a four-meter walk from the front door of my house. It is a stone structure with windows on three walls which provide both a gorgeous view of the surrounding countryside and plenty of natural light, sometimes too much in fact. I love being able to walk straight out the front door and into this lovely private space at any time wearing anything (or nothing). It would be my dream studio if only it had a higher ceiling and about three times the space, but I make it work. I am extremely grateful for my husband´s extraordinary effort and what it says about how important my work is to him.
Do you prefer to work in silence or does certain music inspire you?
I most often listen to either classical or rock music or political podcasts. The music helps isolate me from the outside world and engulfs me in my creative bubble. I like listening to political podcasts to remain informed, particularly regarding affairs in the US, as I am an ex-pat but at times, they are too much of a distraction and silence reigns in my domain.
Studio life can lead to isolation, how do you address this/ keep a balance?
I take breaks throughout the day and sit and chat with my husband, my best friend. I don´t see friends often, but my close friends know that what I do requires long hours of dedication. I do have two major hobbies that take me out of the studio from time to time: boating and gardening. I think it is fundamental to get away from the canvas on occasion in order to see one´s own work with greater clarity.
What is your favourite/least favourite part of the creative process?
In general, I love the whole process-planning, drawing, painting the first layer, then the subsequent layers. I just love watching the whole evolution as idea becomes image. It is magical. Perhaps what I do not like so much is waiting for paint to dry so that I can continue progress with the piece as I never work on more than one painting at a time.
Describe an obstacle you faced and how did you overcome it.
My art education was an obstacle. I was part of a generation of art students whose teachers had rejected and rebelled against their own traditional training and refused to impart anything akin to it. As a result, I graduated from a prestigious University with a BA in studio art lacking the technical skills which would enable me to become what I had intended to be- a realist painter. While at University, I had spent one year studying in Madrid. I returned there upon graduation where I attended the Art University, “San Fernando”. I also became a regular at “Círculo de Bellas Artes”, a center where a live model posed every evening for anyone interested in figurative drawing. In a way, I consider myself self-taught. Having to pursue academic skills on my own was definitely an obstacle and acquiring them in such a round- about way was quite a laborious process.
How has your style evolved and what contributed to the changes?
I think my work has become tighter and more and more realistic. The resurgence of realism supported by organizations like IGOR or platforms like Poets and Artists has helped me feel validated as a realist and made me braver and unapologetic about what I do. At a younger age, I often felt like I was a lone soldier fighting a battle in defense of a style which so many curators, galleries, and critics considered anachronistic.
Detail a moment which was the highlight for you thus far.
Showing at the MEAM, (The European Museum of Contemporary Art) in Barcelona, with a group of about 50 women figurative realists from around the world, in commemoration of Women´s Day 2019 was definitely the high point for me thus far. The show was organized by Poets and Artists. Many of us painters were at the opening. The connection among us was electric despite not having met one another before. We shared a common driving force (the burning need to create), our approach to the creative process was similar as we were all figurative realists and we were showing our work together at the most important European Museum of contemporary realism.
Is there something you regard as essential to your preparation or process?
An idea which intrigues me. If there is not a story with interesting substance, there is no point in starting the painting. If I am not enthralled by the telling of the tale, the viewer will certainly not be engaged in unraveling and interpreting its meaning.
If you could time travel, what advice would you give the younger you, regarding pursuing your artmaking?
Learn every technical skill possible at school or with a master. Only when you have all the baggage possible can you pick and choose what bags to carry with you on your journey. Disregard the “rules” once you know them, never because you lack the skills to create whatever and however you desire.
How does your work respond to social trends?
I have struggled tenaciously to avoid being subject to trends. As I alluded to previously, after acquiring an art education in a very reputed institution, I was sorely unprepared to execute my paintings in the “untrendy” realist fashion. Still, I do think that the subjects I address have relevance in our current society; I have dealt with violence against women, solitude in old age, the superficial fascination with “the perfect physique”….But I also address timeless subjects regarding human emotions, fears and insecurities shared by all regardless of social trends.
What do you hope to convey through your work?
Despite all the varying degrees of conflict driving humans apart and isolating us from one another, our emotional experience-vexation, joy and all the complexities of the human spirit- is a unifying thread that ties us all together. The protagonists of the stories I paint are humans charged with feeling-universal sentiments that make us so alike. By manifesting their (my) hopes and fears, perhaps I can help others identify and understand their own.
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