Bio
Brandon Bullette spent most of his youth in Joplin, Missouri. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts at Missouri State University in Springfield. Since then, he has traveled the country several times, on bicycle, road trips, and on tour with his wife, singer/songwriter, Candy Lee. He now lives with his wife and two dogs in Fayetteville, AR. Bullette is a very involved member of the artist community in the Northwest Arkansas Region. He has become one of the most sought after artists in the area for commissioned work, such as chalking, murals, and live paintings, all while showing original pieces at festivals, galleries and exhibitions. You can catch Brandon Bullette painting or chalking at many events in NWA, such as The Fayetteville Roots Festival, events for the Walton Arts Center, Block Street Block Party, The Botanical Garden of The Ozarks, and more. He frequently does live paintings during performances by improv comedy group, Roughhouse, and is now a resident live artist for the Last Saturday Fayetteville variety show. Bullette has volunteered for Art Feeds and Missourians for Renewable Energy, as well as The Fayetteville Underground artist collective. methodology
Though Bullette's technique was largely shaped by his college studies at MSU, his artistic style is constantly in flux, evolving with each experiment and introduction of new medium. Most of his early work was created on paper and canvas. Bullette has also developed his own woodworking technique, in which he shapes small to large chunks of wood, flowing with the organic nature of the piece, molding it into a workable surface. He then illustrates and paints with the flow and shape of the surface to make an original artwork that is unique from start to finish. Bullette has always been fascinated with the concept of "Wabi Sabi," which represents a comprehensive Japanese world view or aesthetic centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of beauty that is "imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete." Though Bullette is a highly refined artist, he blends his polished technique with gritty content, squiggled lines, and intentional blemishes. His works have an undertone of whimsy. Even pieces with seemingly mundane content are brought to life with hints of surrealism, distorted figures, or fantastic creatures hiding in the shadows, or within other forms. His active imagination springs from a love for reading that developed from childhood. This affinity comes through in his artworks, as each one tells its own story. artist statement
I have always been a reader. The genres of literature I am most drawn to are ridiculous fantasy, and alternative comics and graphic novels. My head is filled with echoes and shadows of hundreds of images born from a writer’s entertaining description. Somewhere between pen and ink illustration and expressionist painting, I explore a variety of techniques. Most of my work is a result of experimentation of woodworking, drawing and painting techniques. I am not a digital artist, but a class in photoshop changed how I play with layers in a physical image. I apply drastically different layers on a surface to eventually bring them together for a compositionally balanced result. Wrestling with push and pull of the layers provides me with a creative experience that nourishes the novelty of the unpredictable markings with the discipline of balance and representation. |