Today we’d like to introduce you to Brent Bruni Comiskey.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I’ve been an artist and photographer for 30+ years. It wasn’t a deliberate choice. Having been born into a wealthy family gone bust, I was encouraged to pursue business. I rejected such notions and was submitting artwork to publications and making Super 8 films as a mere child in the 1970s. Rebellion hit me like a miracle in the 80s and like many teens in pain and delirium with only a vague understanding of my calling in life, I gravitated towards music; notably experimental music for its ritualistic and audio-painterly qualities. I studied the classical Roman-Greco paintings of antiquity on the side, ending up in a band playing shows around Houston before graduating from high school. We ultimately moved to Paris in 1991. That is when I embarked on my first major body of work as an artist-photographer, titled “Deus Europa”.
Once in Paris (and sadly having departed from the band that I loved), I began a six-month street photography excursion armed only with a manual camera loaded with black and white ammo. I wandered around Paris for months seeking the fleeting compositions that I was ever ready to capture on a whim. I moved on to other areas of Europe doing the same on daily basis. Europe eventually ran its course for me, traveling as far as Istanbul via Switzerland, Italy and Greece, amassing a few thousand photographs framed in camera with one chance to get it right per shot (many years before digital). Twenty-seven years later, I have only seen a handful of these images formally printed, six of which are currently represented by Vaughan Mason Fine Art in Houston with museum framing by Sarah Balinskas. To my surprise, superstar collector Lester Marks made an apparitional appearance at the opening to snag the best of the grouping, which is now hanging somewhere in his home cum contemporary art museum.
The next few years of my life took a pronounced and profound detour into magazine publishing. This was a cultural ramrod for nimrods for those awake in the 1992 – 1998 era of underground music sourced primarily in Texas via Thora-Zine Magazine worldwide, as assisted by a number of genius journalists and propagandists with the heroic efforts of Damon O’Banion (rest in immortal peace) leading the fight for dominance. For a time, we were Gods and corporate record labels were our begging bitches. This fame evolved into a brief relationship with Japan where I conspired with Matt Exile to arrange two seminal tours of major Japanese cities with the Yoshimoto Corporation for punk and noise/scum bands; headlined by Kanami Nozu of Bar Noise and Daimyo Gyoretsu, who also played a spectacular show in Austin. We caught the club on the fire and I bled red blood for art. You can see the videos on YouTube under the Kansai Underground 1996 series. Thora-Zine continues to be sold on eBay among collectors on a weekly basis. Opulence Records also release a CD I produced in 1999 called “Noise Kills Punk Dead” which is available on eBay and Discogs.
Shortly thereafter, I acquired a small video camera, amassing 200 hours of footage. This work became a dissociative collection of video art, exhibiting in galleries such as The Station Museum, outdoor events such as the New Orleans Media Experience and concerts around Texas with bands such as Go Spread Your Wings, Khanate and the Briokids at downtown warehouse parties off the books. This work was often projected via live video mixing from original material and hard news tv footage collected from cable reporters, mangled and distorted into unrecognizable streams of consciousness. A consolidated one hour video piece titled “America Under Destruction” (2004) was ultimately exhibited at Deborah Colton Gallery.
My life became a brave new world with the introduction to a gorgeous and brilliant woman who became the mother of our daughter in 2006; Dominica the Empress of our Hearts. We formed a collective called Pulse: Repulse, shooting tens of thousands of photographs around Texas, the gorgeous Deep South of America, the mysterious corners of Europe, and becoming Artists-in-Residence in the palliative care cancer unit of MD Anderson Hospital. Life was a dream. Unfortunately, the relationship between two intensely creative individuals was too much, as the cliché goes. Our spark above the realm of mortals had gone haywire and we went our separate ways. The Churchill adage “When you’re going through hell, keep going.” came to mind. I thank God for the blessings.
During the next phase of life, I made a heartfelt immersion into abstract paintings. I soaked myself in materials and got to work. Soon after, collectors began to take notice and sales unexpectedly took off among amateur and professional collectors. I spent late night forgetting who I am, where and why I was and let my subconscious dictate the results of my work. The less I paid attention to what I was painting, the better the work became. Collectors approached me from around the states. Lester Marks picked up a few of pieces whenever he saw fit. This has continued since 2010. I’m absolutely addicted. Abstraction is the most inexplicable form of art that I’m involved with. I love it to the incontrovertible core. I’ll be done when I’m dead, if then. My style has transitioned several times, depending on my health and where I am, which is bound to change again as life evolves. For years, my favorite painters were Rothko and Richter. My current favorites painters work in only black and white. One being Whatcott (England), the other being in Krajinovic (Germany). My best is yet to come.
I have been working in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico for four months., My paintings and photographs quickly began to the reflect the colors of the streets, considering this is a walking town. I was quick to notice the distress and graffiti cover-ups on the walls of central San Miguel, and made quick work of a series I titled “Soul in the Wall” as it appears that ancient souls seeking to escape the hundreds year old walls of this small colonial town from the time of New Spain. Rosenblueth Gallery picked up a few of my pieces (with the collaboration of Megan Roche from Canada on a few sculptures). Folklore in Mexico is both innocent and dark by American standards. There is an overwhelming love for nature and a strong admiration of death. I’m half-Mexican so no worries. My other half is English-German-Russian-Jewish. Go figure. This is a special town. People are unbelievably friendly. I’m here with my Swiss Shepherd (thanks to PatioGate Pet Resort in Houston who literally saved her life) and a Siberian Husky (but he’s actually Mexican). Who knows if I’ll be here for three more months or thirty more years.
Please tell us about your art.
Art is a personal relationship between the viewer and the artwork.
As an artist, how do you define success and what quality or characteristic do you feel is essential to success as an artist?
Getting paid.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
Email me at eyewoke@gmail.com and follow my Instagram @brunicomiskey
Contact Info:
- Email: eyewoke@gmail.com
- Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/brunicomiskey
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bbc.art.usa
- Other: https://www.discogs.com/artist/730707-Brent-C
Image Credit:
Brent Bruni Comiskey (and Megan Roche on the sculptural object).
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