Supplicate - January 28, 2011

The monotony of modern American life can bog us down and cause us to lose sight of what matters. When we become preoccupied with trivial things that are ultimately worthless we are capable of forgetting those things that really matter in life. In this series of paintings, Brendan Tierney explores the moment of epiphany that we as human beings are sometimes fortunate to experience, when we are, if only momentarily, liberated from the mental and emotional confines of mediocrity and meaninglessness, free to see and experience the very real existence of love, beauty, and joy.  In these depictions, he creates a sensation of elevation, of being lifted up above one's day to day circumstance and surroundings, attaining a higher perspective and understanding of the "big picture" Visually expressing this profound experience is is quite a lofty ambition that for Tierney serves as a way to remind himself to stay in a place of love and gratitude. To him, this artwork serves as an opportunity to have a positive impact in a person's life.

For Brendan Tierney, painting is the exercise of making physical markers to remind himself and express glimpses of the bigger picture. This comes from several overwhelming "moments of clarity" or periods of revelation, of elevation out of his previous understanding of himself and the world he lives in, physically and mentally. There was a time when Tierney was very cynical and negative about life.  He wrestled with the pain we all experience to some degree throughout our lives and this hopelessness and disgust for his life was reflected in his work. After years of struggling with drugs and all the things which come with that lifestyle, he had the most life changing of these "moments of clarity", and since then he shifted his art work from the negative which came so naturally to the positive (which certainly did not come as easily). He found it truly challenging to try and convey a feeling of joy and gratitude without a painting turning into a kind of cheesy Hallmark car sentiment. After so many years of having an extremely negative impact on the small area of the world that he occupied and the unfortunate people who happened to be close to him, he felt compelled to put something positive out there. (it is an ongoing process) His aim is to visually express the very real joy and beauty that exist even in the context of a chaotic and cruel world.