Title: Jones Ranch Egypt
Holmes drawings explore the artist’s relationship with mark-making, Western / cowboy roots, and the African sculptural / spiritual traditions of his ancestors. Each image is based (however loosely) on a symbolic African sculpture and a piece of American Western art. This series highlights the cultural erasure of black and brown bodies presented within iconic depictions of the West and the “Cowboy” while interrogating the African artifacts collection industry as it relates to the collection and display of tribal artifacts by private and institutional collections.
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Creative Experience
My works are simply the afterbirth and remnants from the act of creativity. The act itself is the actual art artist only makes art in the doing. The works I create are simply echoes of the process. I am embarking on a journey dissecting the American mythic figure of “the Cowboy.” I study this American mythos and icon through the lens of African American identity, the lived Black experience, and the presence of the Black body in the context of landscape.
Biography and links
Brent Holmes is an artist, curator, and cultural animator. Holmes utilizes art and the written word to generate narratives centered around African American history and brilliance. Holmes has exhibited his work at Light & Space Contemporary (Manila, Philippines), the Markeaton Street gallery in Derby, England, the Momentary Art Museum in Bentonville, Arkansas, the Torrance Art Museum in California, the Nevada Museum of Art Reno, and the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art. Holmes has won accolades for his writing and art criticism. He is the host of Neon Hum Media’s Spectacle: Las Vegas, a twelve-part series on the city’s history as a representation of American cultural values. His cinematic work has been featured in the London Biennial, Las Vegas, and at the Momentary Museum.
https://www.instagram.com/bread_n_circuses
- Mayor's Gallery, Las Vegas, US (Work on display: IRL)
- The Hive, Worcestershire, UK (Work on display: IRL & VR gallery)
- RSA House, London, UK (Work on display: IRL & VR gallery)