Never content to reproduce exactly what the his camera has captured, NVOS artist Brenton Beckcreates images that are intentionally the opposite of slick and refined. His photographs are contrasty and simplified, and have a handmade quality to them.
He is drawn to everyday subject matter: old neon signs, cars and trucks; city and vineyard landscapes. It's ordinary things that catch his eye and fire his imagination.
Once Brent has taken his photograph, he "re-imagines" it with digital darkroom techniques into a distinctive artistic statement that he calls a "Photo-Graphic." He tries to create a particular mood by emphasizing composition, color, and texture, experimenting until the image on his computer screen resembles the image in his mind's eye.
The look of his work is strongly influenced by the artwork created to promote California and the West from the early 1900s until the beginning of World War II, work by artists such as Maynard Dixon, Maurice Logan, William Bull and other commercial illustrators. It's their graphic style with dramatic lighting, vivid colors, and strong composition that attracts Brent, and those qualities that he brings to his images.
Once his digital files are finalized, they are reproduced in limited numbers as Giclée prints on state-of-the-art Epson 9900 printers, using archival inks on archival paper or canvas.
Brent's artwork is currently on display at the Artists of the Valley Gallery in Napa. He has also exhibited at the Wildcat Gallery, Napa, the ERA Art Bar and Gallery in Oakland, Taste of Yountville, and at The Grange Art Show, Rutherford. He will also have three of his pieces on display at the Creatives Rising exhibition in NYC this coming October.
And during Open Studios, you can visit him and see his artwork at Studio #4, 1949 Laurel Street, in Napa, California. You can also view Brent's work on the web at: www.creativeshake.com/photographicartist.
