In new job, artist adds colour to ‘stuffed animals’

“All my art inspiration comes from my pursuit of excitement and happiness. I have found that a life doing what you love will forever propel you positively forward. I often get asked why I paint stuffed animals and there are many reasons, one of the most important is to bring people back to the state of childhood when the pursuit of dreams and passions were encouraged. At some point in our lives, society tries to convince us to get a “good” job, save for retirement, and then at 60 you can go have fun. Instead I am going to do what I love now and I would encourage others to do the same,” he said. 

Fortunately or unfortunately, he has no idea how long each painting takes. Hours feels like minutes and he rarely know what day it is. He sees this as a good thing. If he had to give some hard numbers, he says 200 to 300 hours for the more complex paintings.

His winding path and life experiences have strongly influenced his body of work: his struggles with school debt have manufactured the series “Minting Money”, his realisation of mortality and value of time have created the series “Frivolous Pursuits”, and now, his pursuit of internal passions in the face of external influence has inspired the series, “Perpetual Recess.”

“There are many reasons I enjoy painting stuffed animals. I realize that full dedication to your dreams and passions are not always possible however I would encourage everybody to take some time out of their day, think about what makes them happy, and then start taking steps, no matter how large or small, towards a happier life,” says Brent. In total, Brent’s work pays ode to the struggle and evolution he has experienced as a human, and artist.