William J. O’Brien

William J. O’Brien

Inspired by Modernism, as well as the history of material usage of Outsider Art, O’Brien’s multidisciplinary practice is a search for identity and genuine expression through material and process. The Chicago-based artist’s practice often begins with drawing and two-dimensional compositions that reflect a playful exuberance that drowns out both sentimentality and hyper-intellectualism.  During his residency, O’Brien moved from the bed of the intaglio press to the studio drawing tables creating complex compositions that have an affinity with the automatic drawing of the early Surrealists while evoking 60’s psychedelia. Multiple print passes, stencils, handwork drawing with pencil and ink underpin the way O’Brien attends to his choice of materials while subverting their traditional applications.

SELECTED COLLECTIONS:

Miami Art Museum, Pérez Art Museum, Hammer Museum, Hara Museum of Contemporary Art, and The Art Institute of Chicago.