LEO BRATENAS -
ARTIST'S STATEMENT
I am a native of Modesto and a Graduate of Modesto Junior College. My two BA degrees in Fine Arts are from De Paul University and from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. My concentration at both of these institutions was in painting and drawing with a personal interest in sculpture.
As an artist from the Central Valley of California my art is focused on the environment around me. I take my focus on the details of nature. The more "close up" I can get to an object the better. As one observes my paintings they can get a feel of what I mean by "close up". Whether it is the impression of my wife’s belly during pregnancy or the different aspects of a pig’s ear I love to examine nature for its intricate details. Also, I enjoy expressing these forms in painting, drawing and sculpture.
I am influenced by the immediate world around me and try to convey it in an intimate way through painting. I'm very interested in the details of nature which one can see in either the knot of a tree stump or the intricate weaves that roots can display as they grow with perfect form through the earth. Nature itself is a symbol of perfection to me. To demonstrate what my interests are concerning this subject matter, I go right to the source by using the actual root, leaf, or even the dirt from where I stood and conceived the initial idea, then proceed by applying formal techniques of either painting or drawing that best represent the the conception of the subject matter at hand.