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

Brandin, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

One project that has been incredibly special for me to explore is my new collection “Reliquaries”. It is inspired by the reverential practice of creating elaborate shrines for holy relics. My reliquaries lovingly house pollinator seeds to showcase and preserve them. With the natural world in such obvious peril, I am feeling an overwhelming urgency to guard and treasure those things we stand to lose. Reliquaries are sometimes housed for centuries; showing those who view them throughout those years what is precious to us.

Each of my reliquaries is named after the seed it houses and contains viable seeds that could be planted or cultivated in the future if needed. It is hard to imagine the pollinator seeds we rely on no longer being available, and it gives me some small comfort to protect these tiny seeds. With each piece sold, a packet of the contained pollinator seeds will be planted.

Every element of this project seems soft and reverential; from collecting seeds, my boots in the dirt and sun on my face, to sitting quietly in my studio housing the seeds in individual glass beads. Each seed viewed up close is like a tiny sculpture in itself; it is lovely to collect, study, and learn from them.

Brandin, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am an installation/fine artist with a background in scenic design. My work, inspired by the seemingly eternal and awe-inspiring patterns found in nature, allows me to explore the beauty, fragility, and interconnectedness of the natural world and our responsibility towards it. I create installations, sculptures, and fine art utilizing clean contemporary lines to honor the beauty and diversity of the natural world. I work in corporate, commercial, public, and residential spaces.

Working in theatrical scenic design for years expanded my concept of how scale and immersion can affect fine art. I love creating pieces that are site-specific and are affected and changed by the natural light within a space. This can apply to large scale sculptural work or fine art installations in residential spaces.

Although I work with a variety of materials including paper, metal, glass, and stone, the overall aesthetic of my pieces are airy and light. I create personal collections, as well as work with clients to create individualized pieces.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I think the most important lesson I learned as an artist (and person) is that what you have to offer is unique. The work you create should be joyful to you; don’t overthink it. If what you enjoy is reading and walking in the woods and watching light filter through the trees (these may be the things I love) then do those things. As much as possible. Don’t try to aspire to someone else’s work or create work for someone else’s sensibilities. The world already has these things; what the world doesn’t have is what YOU like to make in the way that you like to make it. The skill level and experience level don’t matter; you can feel when you’re looking at work that someone was passionate about making. This is what makes it glow.

Of course, look at and learn from other people’s work. And then disregard it all and create what you love to create.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Other artists. When I was starting out, I hated the term “network”. Blech. What was this vague “network” that I was supposed to be connected to? It was daunting and isolating. Now I realize (perhaps this is obvious to everyone but me) is that the people you spend your time with are your network. They influence the work you create, how much you create, the opportunities you have to create. Spend your time with people who love to make art or look at art or talk about art. Take every opportunity you are given until you have so many opportunities you can start curating the ones you accept.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.brandinhurleystudio.com
• Instagram: @brandin.hurley

Image Credits
John Jennings Photograhy Matthew C. Yee Caroline Chu Toni Maugeri