About Brett Polonsky

My work is the beginning of a story. When I look at a blank canvas I see a space where the characters of my abstracts will play out. As I begin to work on the piece the story starts to take shape. I look for small moments where I can create interest, and as those small moments come together the hope is I’ve created a complete piece. I try to leave the painting in a place that doesn’t give all of the answers and allows the viewer to fill in the blanks.

I will often add in words or phrases as I go through my process. These words represent a specific moment in time, a mood or a feeling that hits me right then. Many times these words are covered up and only a small number of readable words are visible in a finished piece.

Im influenced by the colors and textures I see in the city; often dark places where little moments of color seem to be out of place yet somehow belong. I generally start with a basic color palette in mind and slowly add base layers and texture eventually scrapping away top layers to show what was placed below. I typically use acrylics for large areas and oil sticks and pastels to create more specific shapes and angles. Other items I often use are toilet paper, which makes great texture, concrete paste and surgical gauze.