About Amy Brown
I started painting Faeries in 1992. I'd always
been interested in them, but had never considered them to be a career
option, until one day when I was not quite twenty-one and working in a
small art gallery. My boss asked me to paint something to fill an empty
frame that had been sitting around. I asked her what I should paint and
she said "I don't know, paint a Faery or something." So I did. Three
days later, the piece sold. So I painted another. It sold. And I painted
another. It sold too. You get the picture. I began painting Faeries
whenever I had spare time. Rapidly I became more and more drawn to
painting them. They demanded it. The years shoved their way past me and I
kept my head down; painting, painting, painting and not paying much
attention to the rest of the world unless I absolutely had to. It was
like the Faeries had taken control of me and were pushing me to paint
their portraits and perhaps to let the world know they are watching.
After selling prints and originals at street fairs and in local
shops for a few years, I opened a website and began selling my work
online worldwide. From there my business took off with a mind of its
own. A little more than seventeen years later, over 1300 paintings
completed, and a history of licensed products longer than I can count, I
am still trailing behind helplessly as the Faeries drag me on in a
seemingly endless rampage.
My passion to paint is like a living creature inside me. All the
ideas in my head churn and beg to get out. I'm driven to get them onto
paper and out of my head as soon as possible. The characters move and
speak in my mind. Snippets of stories flit through my mind while the
paint dries. The quicker I can push their essence into the paper with my
brush and banish them from my head, the better. Once I've conjured one
creature, another is waiting impatiently for its turn.
Gradually the Faeries have evolved in meaning for me... something
more than the typical definition of Faeries being winged girls flitting
around in the woods or at the bottom of the garden. They are often wise,
majestic and beautiful. Sometimes they are terrible and cruel. They
embody grace, mystery, wonder and miracles as well as despair, trickery
and desire. Wings can be a symbol of freedom, enlightenment and
spiritual growth; or power and strength. Horns and antlers hint at
ageless wisdom and grace in some Fae and malice and cunning in others.
Feathers signify free spirits or a dark and mournful nature. In the
Faery realm, all things become possible and not all is what it seems.
My goal in my work has always been to capture a moment and offer
that moment to the viewer to weave his or her own story. I want each
piece to whisper, taunt and tickle a reaction out of you.
My paintings always speak to me. What will they say to you?
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Things I Like:
(I reserve the right to change my mind about any of these at any given time)
Artistic Influence: Brian and Wendy Froud, Michael Parkes,
Stephanie Law, Alphonse Mucha, James Christiansen, Tony Diterlizzi,
Daniel Merriam... and too many others to list.
Inspiration: books, art, movies, music, dreams, nightmares…you name it. Inspiration is everywhere. Color: RED.
Music: Loreena McKennitt, The Smiths, Neko Case, Abney Park, Adam Hurst.
Movies: Heavy Metal, Labyrinth, LOTR, Nightmare Before Christmas, Coraline, The Fantastic Mr. Fox.
TV Shows: (many of which have been canceled, I am so depressed):
Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, X Files, Farscape, Firefly, Battlestar
Galactica (new version), Castle, Fringe, Bones, Smallville,
Supernatural, Dr Who (w/ David Tennant), Pushing Daisies, Red Dwarf, Tin
Man.
Books: The Imajica, Someplace to Be Flying, Airman, The Magician’s Elephant, Sisters Grimm series, Inkheart series.
Hobbies: Gardening, Korean Ball Jointed Dolls, collecting Butt Freckles (yeah, you heard me).
Mad Passionate Crush: Orlando Bloom (someone lock that man up
before I hunt him down. Wait a minute, is my husband going to read
this?) and Lee Pace (be still my fluttering heart, ever since Wonder
Falls.)
Misc Facts: I have been painting faeries since 1992, no formal
art training, am older than I look, left handed, married with 2
children, hate to cook, like to stay at home, do not like attention,
can't stop buying clothing, and usually get up before the sun.
Tools of the Trade: Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors, Arches
Bright White 300lb hot press watercolor paper, Pigma Micron ink pens,
PITT Artist Pens, Prismacolor colored pencils, Winsor and Newton
Gouache, Daniel Smith Series 23 watercolor brushes, table salt,
isopropyl alcohol, mechanical pencil. |
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