Patterns of Influence:Watercolors by Benita Brewer at EAG Gallery

Patterns of Influence, a solo exhibition of watercolors by Benita Brewer is presented at the Elmhurst Artists’ Guild Gallery. The show runs July 16th through August 9th, 2019. The public is invited to the opening reception for the artist on Friday, July 19th from 7-9pm in the EAG Gallery at the Elmhurst Art Museum (EAM), 150 S. Cottage Hill Ave., Elmhurst.

Brewer is a local artist who has served on the Elmhurst Artists’ Guild Board and is currently the Director of the Illinois Watercolor Society and Membership Chair for the Transparent Watercolor Society of America. She teaches watercolor painting at the DuPage Art League and is a signature member of the National Watercolor Society.

Brewer earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) from Indiana University and her Master of Fine Arts (MFA) from the University of Cincinnati. After several years of working as a graphic and web designer, she became an Assistant Professor at Indiana-University Purdue-University Fort Wayne (IPFW) teaching visual and multi-media design until 2010. Since that time, Brewer has devoted herself to painting full-time, falling in love with the medium of watercolor.

For Brewer, painting is a form of storytelling. Her ideas often start with a personal connection to a person or object. “It is a spark used for developing a composition that reflects the essence of the memory but becomes more abstract and universal,” She states. She notes that the story may be hers, “but hopefully the viewer interprets the image from his or her own perspective.”

Much of Brewer’s formal art training centered on the graphic arts and she enjoys paying homage to the typographers and designers that so greatly influence our society’s view of the world. She also loves painting portraits and revealing a person’s personality and spirit. More of the artists work can be viewed a www.benitabrewer.com.

The exhibition can be viewed during regular EAM hours, Tuesday through Sunday from 11am to 5pm. While admission to the EAG Gallery is always free, admission to EAM is $12 for adults, and $10 for seniors. EAM offers free admission to students, children under 18, as well as members of either EAG or EAM. All visitors to EAM are admitted free on the first Friday of each month. More information is available at elmhurstartistsguild.org and elmhurstartmuseum.org.

The Elmhurst Artists’ Guild is a not-for-profit organization that runs the EAG Gallery which features contemporary works of art in a variety of styles and media. In addition to four member shows each year, the guild hosts exhibitions of individual member’s artwork and invitational shows for significant local artists. EAG welcomes new members.