Adrien Broom

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, photograph by Adrien Broom.

Adrien Broom (born 1980) is a contemporary fine art and commercial photographer from Connecticut. Broom's fine art photography often alludes to themes of childhood fantasy, with young women as the protagonists. Her commercial work includes fashion and portrait photography.

Broom received a bachelor's degree in computer animation from Northeastern University, studied fine art in Florence, Italy, and art history in the Christie's Education program in London. Citing childhood memories as an important catalyst, she makes use of period costumes to compose images that are often derived from fairy tales, but "It's a little darker than my reality as a child, drawing on my adult vision of the beautiful and bizarre."[1] When composing fantasy-based scenarios on a miniature scale, Broom constructs sets in her studio using malleable and found objects.[2] A current project continues to draw from the interest in fairy tale imagery, with the exploration of color as a unifying theme.[3][4][5] As part of her commercial assignments, Broom regularly photographs Grace Potter and the Nocturnals.

Broom's photographs have been featured in numerous exhibitions in Connecticut and New York City, as well as in the American Dreamers exhibition at the Palazzo Strozzi in Florence in 2012.[6][7] For art historian Roderick Conway Morris, Broom's photographs of ethereal female figures include references to Pre-Raphaelite art, Baroque sculpture and Symbolism.[8] Bartholomew Bland, Director of Curatorial Affairs at the Hudson River Museum, writes that "through the use of photography, Broom cleverly conceals from us her meticulous craftsmanship....in Broom's (work) it is easy to forget that many of the most dramatic effects are created by hand."[9] In her miniature dioramas, Broom uses both overt narrative and enigmatic imagery, with references to classical art as well as existential literature.[9]

Working at Erector Square in New Haven, Broom often supplements her studio's ample natural light with artificial illumination. Her work entails three distinct components: the building of sets, the photographic shoot itself and the subsequent editing of images. According to Broom, the construction of a set takes between one and three weeks. "My sets take a while to build, and renting a space per project just wouldn’t make sense."[10]

Sources

References

  1. ↑ Amy J. Barry, "Reality with a Twist"
  2. ↑ Dream No Small Dreams curated by Bartholomew Bland at Ronchini Gallery, Platform Photo
  3. ↑ Amy J. Barry, "Adrien Broom's current project thrives in living color"
  4. ↑ Julia Gschmeidler, Auf der Suche nach den Regenbogenfarben, Kurier
  5. ↑ Romy Ashby, All About the Joker. Photo District News
  6. ↑ "Lyme's Adrien Broom exhibits in Italy"
  7. ↑ Centre for Contemporary Culture at Palazzo Strozzi
  8. ↑ Roderick Conway Morris, "An Exposition in Florence Focuses on American Artists in the City", The New York Times, May 17, 2012
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Bland
  10. ↑ Ahearn, Meghan. "Studio Tour: Adrien Broom’s Place to Work and Play", Photo District News, February 21, 2014

External links