Meet Mark
Mark Brosmer is best categorized as a hyper-realistic painter with a surrealist edge. Deciding he liked the outcome of drawing with crayons at age 3, his pursuit of an artistic career has been focused since college. Initially a psychology student at the small, all-male liberal arts Wabash College in Crawfordsville IN, Mark was encouraged by his art professor, and became one of several students and professors who were instrumental in getting Fine Art declared as a major. He then became one of four students who were allowed to graduate as an art major from the college in 1985. His technical prowess with a brush has continued evolving, leading him to become known as a master realistic painter, with the LA Times covering his show at the Brand Library as “big bold and surreal in an orderly way. ”
As a youth, Brosmer loved his geography classes best, and dreamed of traveling to exotic places. But after graduating from college, he made the monumental decision to follow two friends and move to Los Angeles in 1987, embarking on his most life-changing and personal journey of his life to pursue his artistic career. Now reticent to leave his home at all, Mark has built his own personal paradise in the hills above Los Angeles within striking distance of the landmark Eagle Rock. He paints daily in his large studio awash in natural light, complete with a roll up door and swings, epic views, and multiple outdoor patio areas for entertaining. His travel now consists of a daily 45-minute hike with his two dogs, Bruce and Olive.
Mark’s subject matter is so commonplace as to be unusual topics for a fine artist. He believes it stems from a certain college assignment that required him to sketch an object that was out of place or context to the environment it was resting in. Looking back, he surmises that it led him down the surreal path, boosted into overdrive upon one day seeing the artwork of René Magritte in art history class. That moment had a profound impact on his direction as an artist, and still influences his work to this day.
One of the instantly identifiable characteristics of Mark’s work that defines and separates him in the sea of Los Angeles artists stems from his particular way of looking at a subject. Intent on finding the elegant nuance in the mundane, his best work is derived from close-up views of ordinary things. Past series have included plush carpeting, glass blocks, post it notes, clouds, jellybeans, and most currently, draped fabric.
Mark is currently represented by Gloria Delson Contemporary Art in Los Angeles CA and Janssen Art Space in Palm Springs. He would most like to be remembered as a technically strong realistic painter whose artwork caused a few smiles and perhaps even generated some laughter.