Brian Luzader was originally a sculptor who only engaged in abstract painting as a form of therapy. “I was a huge perfectionist, and I’d spend a whole week trying to get the contour of one of my sculptures just right — which sucked the fun out of every project I did,” he says. “To get the anxiety out, I would pick up a paintbrush, using it in a very loose and unrestricted way.”
And in so doing, he says, “I experienced a freedom and exhilaration that made me want to just keep on painting.”
Luzader still adheres to a tight schedule, but now it paradoxically supports a more liberating way of creating. “I am usually working on 10, 15, or 20 paintings at the same time, and I will set an egg timer to work on each one for just five or 10 minutes,” he reveals. “That creates a sense of urgency and allows me to paint with bold strokes without second guessing.”
He begins intuitively, “with a couple of strokes, and from there, it’s somewhat of a dance. I usually hit the finish line about when the timer goes off, and then I won’t return to the painting until the next day.”
The canvases are uniformly energetic but vary widely in mood. “Blue Orchid,” part of a lush floral series, exudes tropical sensuality. Dramatic studies like “Smoldering Embers,” a recent favorite, recall the colors of Braque’s still lifes. Semi-figurative, animal-themed charmers like “Full of Bull” and “Theodore Trunks” show warmth and wit.
Luzader says his paintings talk to him and tell him where they want to go. “If one speaks to me more than the others, I will work on it for a few minutes, and then go back to whatever else I was doing.”
But even this seeming whimsy is grounded in pragmatism. “I’m making art to sell and pay the bills — which allows me to keep exploring this medium and having fun — so I need to be a little disciplined about the time I invest in each painting.”
Because he uses what he calls “premium acrylic paints that are stupidly expensive,” it behooves him to be economical with his process, which also plays into aesthetics: “If you spend too much time playing around with paints, it can turn into a muddy mess, and I’m a huge fan of contrast — lights next to darks and flats next to gloss. So sometimes less is more.”
He acknowledges the commercial aspect of his work — “I’m making art that enhances someone’s living environment or work space” — but is also conscious of offering a wide price point (“from $50 to $3,500”).
Luzader’s journey started in high school with ceramics classes and continued at Savannah College of Art and Design, where he majored in furniture design and minored in sculpture. Looking back, he remarks, “you can see the evolution of how you’ve grown and the kinds of decisions you’ve made in terms of composition and color.”
Then he adds (further validating the brilliance of using a studio egg timer), “All we have is the here and now, and painting marks my time on the planet.”
Brian Luzader, West Asheville, Studio 267 at Riverview Station (191 Lyman St.) in the River Arts District, luzaderstudios.com and on Instagram @luzaderstudios. The artist will be doing live demos Saturday, Nov. 11, 10am-5pm, as part of the River Arts District Studio Stroll (happening Nov. 11 &12, riverartsdistrict.com/events/category/studio-stroll).