Interview with Brandon Andrew creator of "i wear my feelings on my sleeve"

Brandon Andrew your latest exhibition “i wear my feelings on my sleeve” at the Virgil Normal store turned art gallery in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles debuted on Saturday the 10th of October 2015 and closes the 7th of November.  The work seemingly whimsical and minimalist at first. Employs conceptual tricks established by the likes of James Turrell, Robert Irwin, and minimalism Mark Rothko comes to mind. But where those traditions follow Clemente Greenberg in disasocciating the work from outside references, yours seeks to attach and undermine the subjects associated.

COLOR, LIGHT, PHYSICAL TEMPERATURE AND TIME ARE THE ELEMENTS THAT YOUR WORK TRAFFICS IN. PLEASE RE-ARRANGE IN YOUR ORDER OF PREFERENCE.
TIME
LIGHT
COLOR
TEMPERATURE

(Intelligentsia)

IN YOUR WORK COLOR IS CONSTANTLY IN FLUX PLEASE GIVE US A CONCRETE DESCRIPTION OF THE EFFECT THIS HAS ON YOU?
IT EFFECTS ME LIKE A THAI MASSAGE, SLIGHTLY DISCONCERTING BUT OVERALL A COMFORT AND RELIEF.  THE ONLY THING THAT IS CONSISTENT IN LIFE IS INCONSISTENCY.

YOU MESH ABSTRACT ELEMENTS AND TIE THEM TO LOS ANGELES. IS THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES CONSTANTLY IN FLUX AND ABSTRACT?
EVERY CITY IS IN FLUXUATION...EXCEPT MAYBE NEW YORK, MANHATTAN SEEMS TO BE HITTING A MOMENTARY STASIS.

(Cesar E Chavez Ave.)

YOU TIE SUNSET BLVD TO THE HOLLYWOOD MOVIE LESS THAN ZERO, WHICH CALLS TO OUR ATTENTION THE SLIPPERY RELATIONSHIP WE HAVE WITH LOS ANGELES BY LAYERING THE EXPERIENCE OF SUNSET BLVD. IN MOVIES AND OUR “IN REAL LIFE” MEMORIES. HAVE YOU EVER EATEN AT THE RAINBOW ROOM?
NO, BUT I’VE GOTTEN TRASHED THERE. IN THE 90’S IT WAS EASY TO USE A FAKE I.D. BEFORE GOING TO SHOWS AT THE ROXY.

(Julian)

CONSIDERING THE WAY YOU JUXTAPOSE MATERIALS AND AESTHETIC TO TITLES SUCH AS CHARLES BELK AND JAMES BLAKE BOTH PERSONS SUBJECT TO CIVIL RIGHTS VIOLATIONS WHY DO YOU USE COLORS AND MATERIALS THAT SUGGEST THE SUBLIME?
I SEE THE USE OF THE SUBLIME AS FORMAL ESCAPISM, A SEDUCTIVE VOID.  TO SOME EXTENT SUNSET BLVD. AND LA SUNSETS ARE IDEALIZED AND IDOLIZED ESCAPIST TRAPS, INSTEAD OF LEAVING MY AUDIENCE TO BASK IN THE SUNLIGHT I USE IT TO TRAP THEM INTO ACKNOWLEDGING THE WAY WE PERCEIVE THE WORLD AROUND US.  THE DOUBLE MONOCHROMES APPEAR TO LOOK THE SAME, BUT UPON SPENDING TIME WITH THEM THE VIEWER IS EXPOSED TO AN ALBERS AND A ROTHKO, VERY DIFFERENT CONCEPTS AND DIFFERENT VISUAL IDENTITIES.  A QUICK READ OF THE WORK DENIES THE VIEWER AS WELL AS THE WORK ITSELF.

IN RODEO DR. AND RODEO RD. THE PIECES ARE IDENTICAL EXCEPT FOR THE TIMING OF YOUR TEMPERATURE CONTROL, WHAT IF ANY CONTRASTS DO YOU INTEND THE VIEWER TO CONNECT?
    THEY ARE NOT IDENTITICAL.  THE POSITIONING OF THE HEATING SYSTEM ON RODEO DR IS 3/4   FROM THE TOP OF THE CANVAS AND THE HEATING SYSTEM RODEO RD IS AT THE VERY TOP.          FORMALLY THEY  ARE THE SAME WHEN NOT ACTIVATED BUT LIKE THE OTHERS THEIR INNER          WORKINGS ARE VERY DIFFERENT.   BUT FOR THE SAKE OF THIS Q&A LET'S SAY THAT THEY ARE      EXACTLY THE SAME, THAT THE HEATING ELEMENT IS IN THE SAME SPOT.  IF I HAVE ONE GO ON AND     OFF BETWEEN 11AM-9PM  AND THE OTHER FROM 11PM-9AM WOULD YOU CONSIDER THEM TO BE THE SAME PIECE?  DO YOU THINK TIME HAS THE ABILITY TO IDENTIFY A DISTINCT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TWO PIECES OF ART?

THE  ELEMENT OF TIME HAS THE CAPABILITY TO MAKE ANYTHING PLASTIC OR MALLEABLE. WHICH WOULD LEAD THE VIEWER TO FIND A “UNIQUE” ITEM AT THAT POINT IN TIME.

THAT GIVEN, YOUR PIECES DRAW DIFFERENT MEANINGS ONCE READ WITH TITLE SUCH AS “JULIAN” OR SUNSET DRIVE THE REFERENCE TO ROBERT DOWNEY JR’S CHARACTER AND HIS PREDICAMENT IN LESS THAN ZERO EXPERIENCE ON SUNSET BLVD. WHAT CAN A VIEWER INFER FROM THE NEARLY IDENTICAL TITLES RODEO DR. VS RODEO RD. AND HOW DOES TIME AND HEATING SYSTEM TIE INTO THIS CONTRAST YOU ARE CREATING?

RODEO RD AND RODEO DR ARE RELATIVELY SIMILAR, A COUPLE LETTERS ARE SWITCHED BUT OTHERWISE THEY'RE THE SAME... WHAT MAKES THEM DIFFERENT IS THAT ONE IS IN BEVERLY HILLS AND IS PRONOUNCED RODAAYO AND THE OTHER IS PRONOUNCED RODEO AND IS IN INGLEWOOD. NOT KNOWING ANYTHING ABOUT LOS ANGELES AND OUTSIDER WOULD NOT RECOGNIZE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THESE STREETS BUT FOR A LOCAL THEIR HISTORICAL IDENTITY DICTATES THE WAY THEY ARE PERCEIVED. SO LIKE THESE STREETS MY PIECES HAVE THEIR OWN A PRIORI KNOWLEDGE.

(Rodeo Rd. & Rodeo Dr.)

(Orlando)