Bre Andy: Documenting Black and Brown Women Through Figurative Oil Painting in Brooklyn

Inspired by the writings of Angela Davis, Bre Andy seeks to understand the struggles of black women who came before her, specifically in the context of black women in America

Bre Andy through portraits and still-life moments dedicates her craft to an exploration of womanhood

Brooklyn-based artist Bre Andy dedicates her craft to an exploration of womanhood. The self-taught figurative oil painter breathes life into the canvas with portraits and still-life moments that bear an introspective analysis of personal experience regarding friendship, intimacy, sexuality, and domesticity for all to witness. Her tight-shot moments of life provide an intricate and familiar glimpse into the private scenes of life. 

A practice carried on vulnerability and intimacy, Andy stresses her commitment to creating authentic representations of women, particularly black and brown women. In exploring themes of identity and self-discovery through her art, Andy shares she has learned resilience with every brush stroke, actively deconstructing the terms and conditions put onto women, stating, “My experience as a woman, not that it looks like everyone else’s, but it’s the only one that I have, and so I’ve realized the strength and vulnerability that I can portray through being an artist.” Channeling her natural instincts of womanhood through her work is Andy’s chosen way of fighting the higher powers that prevent women’s voices from being heard. She sees strength in the natural-born emotions she bears, which motivate her to be a medium of a feminine force as an artist. 

Bre Andy began her journey of self-discovery in her bedroom through nude photos and self-examination

In exposing herself, Bre Andy sought answers regarding how she wanted to be perceived and understood. In the early days of her painting, Andy often pulled inspiration from herself by orchestrating a series of webcam self-portraits or looking through her camera roll for captured moments of aesthetically interesting compositions, stating that some of her most successful paintings were so simple, such as a painting of her leg or other moments that may not seem to matter but possess a moment of life that are just a part of existence. Having strong relationships, both platonic and romantic, with women provides Andy with a dual perspective in the narratives she shares in her compositions. This duality brings to existence an admiration for the women of her work that sparks intrigue in audiences that Andy hopes will inspire a more profound understanding in themselves as observers. 

Inspired by the writings of Angela Davis, Andy seeks to understand the struggles of black women who came before her

“I regret to inform everyone that even talented artists are still figuring out their identities, and probably no one actually has it figured out”. Bre Andy reveals that although she’s still figuring out who she is, her work has become a reflection of her. Her painting has allowed her to understand how she sees herself and the world as her practice grows and develops beyond her self-portraits and onto portrayals of friends and still moments of life that reflect who she is, “It’s not just about me. It’s more about women as a whole, black women as a whole, and trying to show this is what women look like.” Inspired by the writings of Angela Davis, Andy seeks to understand the struggles of black women who came before her, specifically in the context of black women in America. I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept. – Angela Davis wrote.

Bre Andy: Tumblr was a large part of discovering vulnerable and intimate capsules of people’s lives

Always having been drawn to coming-of-age movies for young women, Andy Bre speaks of a natural empathy that has been pulled out of her in those narratives that have allowed her to open herself up to vulnerability in her work and that push the boundaries for her as she has seen through the eyes of inspirations like Sofia Coppola, “I’m grabbing stuff to see how relationships are captured, anything that has a softness to it.” Often questioning why she was drawn to certain things as a young girl – and like all Sofia Coppola fans – for Bre Andy, Tumblr was a large part of discovering vulnerable and intimate capsules of people’s lives and being exposed to images and themes that weren’t typically displayed so boldly in mainstream media. The unguarded webpages of Tumblr taught Andy how to digest her own relationships, sharing that a lot of her work behind the scenes and beyond the canvas is about her relationships. This sliver of her life can be present in the forefront or as a hidden message in the title, a constant reminder of how she views her work and others. 

Bre Andy does not want to shock her audience or expose overly erotic moments of her subject’s lives

While her work is born from private, intimate moments, Andy does not want to shock her audience or expose overly erotic moments of her subject’s lives. As Angela Davis said, “It is in collectivities that we find reservoirs of hope and optimism,” Andy’s goal is for her pieces to create a feeling of an existing collective force that feels familiar without commodifying or objectifying the matter, especially for women. Her work offers a raw reflection of real women and what they look like. 

Andy hopes the vulnerability in her pieces can be a tool for helping others process their own regarding beauty as a whole. Andy wants to be a tool in understanding humans in the world, from how people perceive women, how men perceive women, how men perceive sexuality, or how women perceive sexuality.  While her work conveys this effortlessly, her discipline as an artist pushes her to make a point to prove something with these everyday snippets of life.

Bre Andy presents to her audience a large-scale full-body portrait of a woman in her room glaring at the viewer from the edge of her bed

Siting Upon Arrival as her most righteous piece thus far, Andy presents to her audience a large-scale full-body portrait of a woman in her room glaring directly at the viewer from the edge of her bed. This is one of the few pieces where she displays the subject beyond her typical tight crops, “I wanted to have a more open view because I felt the space around her was essential to take in so that you understood more of the narrative and the space that the subject was taking up.” In most of her work, Andy focuses on zoomed-in perspectives that bring viewers to see specific actions or body parts to create a voyeuristic observation of the subject, which she compares to being on the train being captured by details of strangers. 

Bre Andy shares that one of the many artists she draws inspiration from is John Kacere. Kacere’s photorealist paintings depict the midsection of the female body and Andy brings to life her own contemporary adaptation to include black and brown women. In her paintings Hanes and Peek, Andy uses these Kaceresque point-of-views and plays with the concept of objectification and how she, as a woman, is looked at and how she looks at other women. 

From the Feminine Gaze:  Toyin Ojih Odutola, Chloe Wise, and Issy Wood, Sheila Metzner

Some other artists that Andy credits as inspiration for her work are contemporary painters Toyin Ojih Odutola, Chloe Wise, and Issy Wood, as well as photographer Sheila Metzner. These artists’ unfiltered portraits from their female gazes present viewers with perceptions of subjects without any conditions attached. As her practice stemmed from painting photos she captured, Andy expresses an appreciation for how Metzner blended still life and portraiture in her soft compositions, which can be seen as an inspiration across her portfolio.

Andy praises this current period in art as a time in which the most women are being seen in history. This saturation allows both men and women to come face-to-face with an often unseen point-of-view. The reality we’ve lived in for most of documented history and art is a male-constructed one that has conditioned everyone to view the world from a male gaze. In Andy’s self-discovery, it is clear this is a significant part of her journey as an artist in her focus on documenting women. 

I go super close in on the detail because that’s all I’m allowing you to see

Andy’s perspective as a queer black woman is the truth she desires to share with the world. Her work serves as an invitation for viewers to step into her world and focus on the small details, such as the folds of fabric over a woman’s body and the light reflecting off someone’s bare shoulder. Andy wants to uncover how she herself looks at others, whether it be an objectification or from attraction; however, she shares only a peek of what she sees stating, “I can control the view. Maybe that’s why I go super close in on the detail because that’s all I’m allowing you to see.” The evolution of her work often follows her life experiences to process relationships and understand where intimacy comes from and how to reflect it in her paintings, referring to them as whispers of things she has been through. 

The most common relationship Andy portrays in her work is that of her friendships. In her soft, cohesive tones and delicate brushwork, she seamlessly creates a conversation between the subtly provocative nature of her subjects and an underlying sense of warmth and tenderness that feels like a long hug from someone who knows you well. Andy expresses great gratitude to those who join her in the vulnerable process of perhaps displaying parts of their body for others to witness, trusting her with their image, and creating an authentic story from these reserved moments. I can think of no better way to immortalize friends than through painting a delicate moment spent together. 

Xheni Balliu