In the time that I’ve known Judith Brandon, I’ve had the privilege to witness a coalescing of years of experimentation and honing of craftsmanship that have made her a world-class artist.

As a curator, I often visit Judith’s studio as she works toward each new exhibition. Drawings at various stages of completion are arranged on tables and tacked to the walls of her studio. In the past, scribbled notes on scraps of paper would have accompanied her drawings—often idiosyncratic phrases without context—reminders of what she wanted to focus on, as she worked on individual drawings. These words evoked specific memories and emotions, and became the filter through which she imagined her compositions. Eventually those scraps of paper vanished, as Judith began carving her notes directly into the paper of her drawings, embedding their meaning more deeply.

Judith’s compositions function as emotional cyphers, resonating something primal and dreamlike that connects with the collective unconscious, pulling the viewer into the spaces she creates beyond the physical dimensions. Her work is a record of her emotions, experiences and inspirations, recorded not only in the primary imagery, but in layers within and beneath her media of ink, charcoal and pastel. Judith’s use of emotion as an intangible medium is one of the factors that make her work so compelling and unique. Viewers sense that there is something to be decoded, and they are captivated.

What is most impressive about Judith’s work is that it is consistently powerful and engaging. All of the elements are harmonized, bringing the viewer into alignment with the resonance of each piece, and giving one a sense of communion, as we are transported into higher realms of emotional and sensory experience.

Selected 2017 Juried Exhibitions:

2017 Biennial Juried Exhibition, Ohio Arts Council’s Riffe Gallery, Columbus, Ohio
Jurors: Larry Collins, Janice Driesbach, Daniel Hernandez

Brand 45 | Works on Paper | Forty-Fifth Annual National Juried Exhibition, Brand Library & Art Center, Glendale, California
Juror: Leslie Jones, Curator of Prints and Drawings, Los Angeles County Museum of Art (84 works accepted from 1155 entries)

Monochrome, Manifest Gallery, Cincinnati, Ohio
(13 works accepted from 421 entries from 5 countries)

8th Annual May Show, Lakeland Community College, Willoughby, Ohio
Juror: Louis Zona, Executive Director & Chief Curator, Butler Institute of American Art (Juror’s Award)

94th Annual Spring Show, Erie Art Museum, Erie, Pennsylvania
Juror: William Wegman

The National Weather Biennale, National Weather Center, Norman, Oklahoma (cosponsored by Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art–University of Oklahoma, and the Norman Arts Council)
Juror: Joe Goode (People’s Choice Award)

8th Annual Drawing Discourse: International Contemporary Drawing Exhibition, University of North Carolina–Asheville, Asheville, North Carolina
Juror: Scott Noel (42 works accepted from 905 entries from 10 countries)

JUDITH BRANDON: SOLO EXHIBITION | November 17–January 13

Reception: 5–9pm Friday, November 17 | Resonant Drawings, a catalog of mixed media works from 2009–2016, will be available for sale in the gallery.

 

Kenneth Paul Lesko Gallery

1305 West 80^th Street

Cleveland, Ohio 44102

216.631.6719