Artist Statement
My work explores domestic objects and spaces and ways of manipulating them to create a different perception of something recognizable. This often takes me in the direction of recreating household objects with contradictory materials, and new symbols and manipulating scale to add my own twist and change the meaning. Sculpture, drawing, and painting are all essential parts of my practice. I experiment with an array of mediums including metal, plaster, paint, found objects, digital mediums, and soft sculpture materials.
Identity, domestic imagery, and functionality are at the core of my practice. Removing function from functional objects to change its meaning and context is a common theme in my practice. As I work, I think about who I am and where I’ve been and let those ideas and memories influence my creation. I rarely know the true and complete meaning of what I am making until the end when I have engaged with all aspects of it, visually and conceptually. My process does not end until I feel each piece has reached its full potential and fulfills my intentions for it as well as the new meanings created throughout its fabrication.
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BIO
Currently a student in the scholar’s program at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Naomi Brenneck has been pursuing a career in sculpture for the past four years. Her primary mediums are bronze, steel, plaster, soft sculpture materials, ink, and acrylic paint. Starting in painting, her work has evolved from illustration and large-scale acrylic paintings to sculpture, interactive projects, and contemporary drawing practices. In 2019, Brenneck began working in a foundry and started experimenting with bronze casting.
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The themes of her work can vary and can include mental health awareness, personal narratives, and autobiographical illustrations. Personal experiences feed her work and memories often become the conceptual focal point. Learning to live with anxiety, bipolar disorder, and PTSD has also informed the content of her work.
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Since her first group show at the Hosmer Gallary in 2017, her work has been displayed across the country as well as internationally at Art Show International, Yes Fest Boston, Tufts University, 1313 Gallery in Toronto, Black Box Gallery, and more. In addition to this, she has also won various awards for paintings, sculptures, photography, and commercial design in juried exhibitions and independent competitions.