We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ben Brummerhop a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Ben, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

I’m currently working on a new exhibition that explores the impact of music on my art. Living with chromesthesia, a rare condition where sounds trigger colors, shapes, and movement in my mind.

Titled “Do You See What I Hear?”, the exhibition is set to debut in late 2025. It will visually depict the imagery evoked by music. While I’ve previously incorporated these visualizations into my artwork, this show will strive for a more direct representation of my chromesthetic experiences.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I have spent three decades finding novel ways to forge beauty out of chaos. Although my abstract paintings hang in more and more prominent exhibitions with each passing year, simple concepts like music, color, shape and motion still guide my creative process.

It starts with something much more personal, though. Hidden beneath textured layers of acrylic on each canvas are relics of my lifelong search for meaning — literally, in fact, as I always bury words, numbers and symbols in my work.

It is this deep involvement in my process that earns national tours for collections like “A New Use For Syringes” and lands my pieces in showings such as Art Basel and SWISSARTEXPO. More importantly — to me, at least — it seals rare, lifelong bonds with clients and collaborators.

I like to joke that I pursued abstract art because I am terrible at drawing. I was born in Pasadena, Texas and my family relocated to Tallahassee, Florida, where I lived what I consider to have been an ordinary childhood. Art was always within reach, however. My family encouraged my creative pursuits from an early age, and attending 1990s raves exposed me to a crossfire of profound, new ideas.

I suffer from a form of synesthesia called chromesthesia — or benefit from it, one might argue. Hearing music, especially with lyrics, causes distinct colors and shapes to form in my mind’s eye. My body of work started out modestly enough; it served as an ongoing journal that I would bury in the vibrant hues evoked by listening to electronic music.

One of my favorite gestures was to hand paint unique wrapping paper when giving gifts to my friends. One of them kept a few years’ worth of these coverings, and his interior designer eventually discovered them. The designer got ahold of me and proposed that we collaborate on a canvas painting. It gave me the confidence to pursue art in a professional capacity.

I first showed my art in coffee shops and the like, earning my first big opportunities starting in 2004. My paintings hung in an exhibition at Off Broadway  in Madison, Wisconsin before appearing in galleries at Overture Center, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, and Michael Murphy Gallery. In 2006, I introduced a series called “The Swirls” at Red Stripe Gallery that remains a beloved signature of mine to this day.

To that, I credit a happy accident that ended up adding a rich, new dimension to my craft. I slipped up and told an interviewer about the words I wrote on the canvas of each painting, meaning that the most personal aspect of my art was no longer a secret. Then, in 2010, a client asked if they could bury words of their own in one of my paintings.

While hesitant at first, I acquiesced. What I didn’t expect was the joy I would find in sharing my unique style of art therapy with others, helping them process their own trauma, and memorializing their self-care in a meaningful way. I dedicated the “The Swirls” series to similar collaborations from then on; the rest of my paintings still serve as my own private journal.

I have heard time and time again that I provide a safe space for the people lucky enough to get swept up in my vibrant world of sensory expression. I never tire of hearing it. Each connection inspires me to bare more of who I am, and in turn, it furthers my own self-discovery. What I do runs deeper than splashes of paint on a canvas.

Three decades later, I still approach art with the malleable mind of a beginner. I likely always will. As I grow and evolve, so too does my body of work convey a sense of forward momentum.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I love to collaborate with clients who perceive themselves to be void of a creative voice and help them to bring their ideas and life story out onto canvas. I find this to be extremely rewarding for myself and the commissioner.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

After almost 20 years of sobriety from IV methamphetamine addiction, I faced a period where my creativity seemed lost. It took over a year to rekindle my creative spark without being drawn back to substance abuse. Uncertain whether I was an artist or merely an addict with time to spare, I undertook a journey of self-discovery. Reconnecting with music and seeking a genuine and sober approach to my art became pivotal in my path forward.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.benbrummerhopart.com
• Instagram: benbrummerhopart
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/benbrummerhopart/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-brummerhop-b5438228/

Image Credits
Briana Thompson Sean Hendricks