La Luz de Jesus Presents Mark Bryan

Mark Bryan

"Monkeys in My Head"

June 5 - 28, 2009

Mark Bryan usually begins his oil and canvas paintings with a beautiful natural landscape--although he cannot seem to leave it at that. Because of his need to make comment, he feels compelled to fill it up with depictions of absurd human activities and/or violent acts of revenge by Mother Nature. These depictions are full of symbolism, exaggeration and parody, much in the manner of political cartoons. The works in “Monkeys in my Head” bounce back and forth between serious themes and humor just for its own sake. “This time around, the serious pieces are more inward and personal in nature than my usual reflections on politics and the human condition,” states Bryan.

Born in Southern California during the ‘50s, Bryan soaked up the pop culture and angst of that era, and the paranoia and anti-war/psychedelic/spiritual movements of the ‘60s. In the Seventies while attending Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles (where he graduated with a Masters of Fine Arts in 1974), Bryan took up with some of the early founders of the Chicano Art movement (Los Four). They introduced him to the Mexican Muralists’ work of the early 20th century and the value of their tradition of accessible work with social/political content. In more recent years, the continuing wars, terrorism and the environmental emergency have not served to change his perspective about human nature and continue to provide a never ending supply of material to work with.

In spite of the disturbing nature of his topics, Bryan somehow manages to retain a sense of humor about it all. His work appears on numerous satirical and political web sites across the US and internationally. It has been featured as illustration and cover art for publications, including Juxtapoz and Adbusters magazines. Bryan has lived on the Central Coast of California for the past 33 years and tries to paint and surf as much as possible.

Show Statement available here.