Self-taught artist Brooke Rowlands is making waves in the art world. Her work has been featured nationally from Texas to Times Square in addition to features in national television series including The Vampire Diaries and Houzz project with Actress Olivia Munn. Rowlands is a native of Trenton, New Jersey who has resided in Oklahoma for the last 15 years. She credits her early influence in art to her grandmother but influences of abstract artist Franz Kline and illustrator Clare Leighton are also evident on the surface.
Rowlands approaches her work with a combination of the day’s emotion and the intention of creating alla prima. Unabashed about her intent the artist displays aggressive expressive strokes, in often lush juxtaposition of vivid color, which creates the initial perspective plane of her compositions.
Once the mood of each piece has begun to deliver itself the artist selects the to either leave the color to stand alone or add flower forms which will eventually emblazon the surface completing each piece. With the floral forms selected the artist takes to work on paper to complete each flower form in stunning detail using ink and other graphic media.The completed drawings are clipped from their paper substrate and their neutral color is expertly inserted into the bold abstract planes on her canvases. The artist then prepares the surface with finishing compounds that seal the layers together marring them into harmony. The result of the tumultuous combination of color and neutrality is a playful dance that exists between atmosphere and subject.
