Don Brown (b. 1962, Norfolk, England) studied at the Central School of Art (1983-5) and the Royal College of Art (1985-8) (both London, England). His work explores notions of beauty and representation often within an aesthetic vocabulary that looks closely at methods of representing reality made by artists from other periods and cultures. Known for his sculptures, particularly his ongoing ‘Yoko’ series, Brown pursues the sculptural ideal of attempting to give form to thought. His corpus is defined by the implicit animation of both figurative and static forms, in which minutely observed impressions of reality coalesce with art historic or mythic resonances, evoking the essence of the human psyche. In recent years, Brown’s practice has entered a decisive new phase to include painting and drawing. Recorded from both life and from paintings he admires, the scenes, featuring flowers and various other inanimate forms, reflect the enduring dualities within his practice of specificity and universalism, the impermanent and the eternal. Of his painting, Brown has stated: ‘I’m wrestling with the idea of trying to make an image and fix it, while the thing itself is changing.’
