Atlanta-based abstract artist and muralist Alex Brewer aka HENSE has been commissioned to paint everything from churches to underpasses.
Muralist Alex Brewer aka HENSE
the following text is courtesy of the artist’s website:
The artist has been creating colorful works of art combining techniques of street art and abstract painting for nearly two decades. Growing up in an artistic household allowed him to draw inspiration from various elements of his childhood. Starting in the early ‘90s, Brewer discovered his love for creating art in the public space through graffiti. He quickly became consumed with the graffiti culture and gained notoriety for his work under the name HENSE. A mix of formal education, immersion in street art culture, and experience in professional studios have lead Brewer to establish his whimsical abstract-inspired style.
“HENSE combines the quick pace and point-of-view of street culture with tumultuous compositions often characterized by highly keyed color, vertiginous line and biomorphic shapes.” – Michael Rooks, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the High Museum of Art.
Brewer has always been inspired by creative expression in the public realm and feels it plays an important role in the community. His artwork combines a street culture point-of-view with abstract compositions often consisting of vibrant colors, playful lines and a wide variety of shapes. His work focuses on the relationships of shapes, forms and colors and how those elements interact with one another.
Commissioned public work for Venture Richmond and RVA Festival in Richmond, Virgina:
Privately commissioned public work on a historic church in South West Washington D.C.:
Mural painted on an abandoned oyster factory in Oyster, Virgina:
Public work commissioned for the South Broad Mural project, funded by the city of Atlanta:
Parking garage wall installation in Detroit, MI. Commissioned and realized through Library Street Collective Gallery for Bedrock Real Estate Services. latex enamel and spray paint, 10×300 feet, Detroit, MI (Photography Sal Rodriguez):
His largest commissioned work to date is that for the ISIL Institute in Lima. It’s an impressive size of 137 feet tall and 170 feet wide. Organized by Morbo Gallery, 2013:
Underpass murals were painted for The Atlanta Beltline in 2010. Latex house paint and aerosol on concrete:
Other underpass murals commissioned by the city of Atlanta in 2012:
Mural at Art Basel Miami, Florida, 2010:
A mural in Columbus, Georgia:
Full building mural for the new Fay Gold Gallery and Westside cultural Arts Center in Atlanta. Georgia:
Many of his tools remain consistent with those used by graffiti artists, such as rollers, spray paints and house paints. Brewer pushes himself to explore new concepts during the course of creating artwork. The freedom to re-paint and add layers during the progress of a project leaves room for experimentation and discovery. Brewer continues to explore new avenues of his artwork and looks forward to wherever his next projects will take him.
He has an upcoming solo exhibition at the Reynolds Gallery.
HENSE: Drawings, Paintings and Shapes
Reynolds Gallery
July 10th -August 29th 2014
Richmond, Virginia
all images © and courtesy of the artist