Aaron Brodeur
Aaron Brodeur is an artist living and working in Middleboro, MA. His work primarily involves painting, sculpture and drawing, and on how these disciplines can intertwine. Influences and interests are expansive, and often pull from art history, cultural sources, personal experiences, nostalgia, and mental states
Q&A
Pine, douglas fir, found wood, steel, wire, carved trucast, sawdust and ash compound, poly-fil, acrylic and spray paint on sewn canvas
What are your earliest memories of being artistic? It must have been in the late 80s when I first became aware that I was interested in making art. I would draw comic and cartoon characters, surf and skate graphics, sports teams logos, and other pop culture motifs. My family took notice and enrolled me in a summer art class at a local community college. That class taught me about abstract art, and from then on I was hooked. No one in my family, or anyone that I knew was an artist, so my understanding of the arts was extremely limited. After that, my claim to being an artist was that I was a “kid who could draw.”
When did art become a pursuit? Freshman year of high school is when I decided that I wanted to start taking art seriously and develop my skill. I hated school passionately and had a difficult time being there, but I loved art class, and that saved me. It was all I wanted to do in school. As a senior, I would skip other academic classes and stay in the art room working on my AP projects until my teacher would decide to stop overlooking my presence and would send me on my way.
Are you self-taught or formally educated in visual art? My long and complicated journey through undergrad began at Emmanuel College in Boston. I was there for one year and took foundational courses. During my time there it became undeniably apparent that I had unaddressed mental health issues that were drastically affecting my well being (and my scholarship). So, I returned home to Rhode Island and went to Bristol Community College part time where I continued to take foundational courses. I then transferred to UMass Dartmouth and finished my BFA there, eight years after my collegiate journey began. I did very well at UMass and that set me up to be accepted to Boston University and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts for grad school. I enrolled in the grad program at SMFA, but withdrew before classes began. A decision that was impossible to make and intensely agonizing, but was necessary at the time.
Acrylic and spray paint on canvas mounted on shaped frame
How did you first become involved with CAA? I signed up to be a member this past summer. Being so isolated and shut off to art experiences due to Covid created a need for me to seek more community. The ever lingering presence of the virus is still restrictive, but having connected with CAA has been exciting and has made all the difference. I immediately showed a painting in the Mary Schein Fall Salon, and I was just accepted into the upcoming Strategies of Resplendence exhibition.
In what other ways are you involved in the local art community? I’ve been a member at ArtsWorcester for a few years, and that’s been keeping me very active. Also, this year I have been in online shows in Cambridge and Brooklyn, I showed at Fitchburg Art Museum and the Sprinkler Factory in Worcester. I’m always looking to extend my reach with showing work, and as much as possible I get out to gallery openings and visit art museums.
What is your creative process? Where are you finding ideas for your art these days? For a long time I’ve theorized that having a diverse practice is important, and that my duty as an artist is to have a wide breadth of work across disciplines, and to bring several series of works based on separate ideas into existence. So that’s what I’ve done up until now. The propensity to continue working in this manner has been exhausted, and can now be abandoned. I’m currently in a moment where I feel there is a pressing requisite to hit the master reset button. Deep reflection needs to take place to filter through all of my work and find the core of it all; to identify a singular focus with consistency in backing a point of view. My voice is in everything I’ve done, but I can’t hear it through all the interference taking place in my head.
How do you choose your subject matter? Is there a reoccurring theme that carries throughout your work? Themes, content and subject matter come from extensive interests that I connect with or am curious about. Personal experiences and internal conversations make their way into much of the work also. Sometimes the subject matter is about process and experimentations with materials, or simply the practice of making art and what it means to be a contemporary artist.
In your opinion, what’s your best/favorite piece you’ve made? Picking favorites has never been something that I’ve been capable of narrowing down to a single selection in any topic. There are favorite moments that I’ve touched on in a lot of my work that excite me. I guess I would have to say that my favoritism leans towards my figurative paintings.
What is one of your artistic goals? The ultimate goal is to have the opportunity to focus on making my work full time. It’s all about the art for me. Obviously in order for that to happen there needs to be financial backing, and I want that support to be earned through the success of my work.
What’s your favorite place to see art, and why? Mass MoCA is very dear to me. It’s a huge complex that’s relaxed and highly accessible with so much to see. There’s a sort of magic there, something that always fills me with inspiration and a sense of wonder.
What living artists are you inspired by? Oh, so many. Off the top of my head: Huma Bhabha, Sterling Ruby, Eddie Martinez, Martin Puryear, Katherine Bradford, Tal R, Jonathan Lasker, Jason Stopa, Joshua Abelow, Jordy Kerwick, Bel Fullana, Bill Saylor…the list goes on and on.
Do you own any art by other artists? Is so, what artists? So far I have several paintings, drawings and prints from my friend Brian Fox, and two paintings by Jonathan Langfield. Trading artworks (that we’re willing to part with) with other artists would be a fun way to build a collection
See more from Aaron
Instagram: @aaron.brodeur_studio
Website: www.aaronbrodeurart.com