ARTIST STATEMENT

Most of what I create, from collages to paintings, has a found element — a book oxidized 

by a note placed inside its pages decades before or a rejected piece of partially dyed canvas.

With my collages, I'm inspired by the hunt to find new materials and subject matter and the challenge of executing and editing. A piece is finished when the combination of shapes, colors, and ideas come together like a puzzle and when the positive and negative space have equal say. 

Many of my paintings expand upon my “Gathering” series — works of surrealistic landscapes with peculiar masses of people. Many of these pieces evolve from recent travels and outdoor escapes where I find myself searching for sparks of inspiration in landscapes and quirkiness in nature. Some scenes become backdrops and some I sculpt and alter to fit an obnoxious number of humans.

I make art to see how far from my comfort zone I can go, to make something beautiful from something discarded, and to discover new directions in both process and subject.

I live and work in Jersey City, NJ.

BIO

Kirkland Bray has been painting on found surfaces for more than 20 years. In 2012, he began exploring “found” through collage. Kirkland lives and works in Jersey City, NJ.