With their two-person show DNA, opening February 23 at Fabrik Gallery in Culver City, father and son duo Brandon and Stuart Kusher are a unique pairing. Stuart is a sculptor and creator of deeply dimensional wall art, and Brandon, Stuart’s son, is a photographic artist.
Despite the differences in their mediums, both have a unique eye for capturing haunting images that seem to inhabit the light in which they are created. Many have an internal burnished quality that goes beyond medium into a world view and artistic aesthetic. Stuart is exhibiting sculptural works that range from throughout his 50-year practice, while Brandon will be showing both black and white and color photographic works.
Working in bronze scultpure, Stuart offers a fresh take on the classic technique of old masters. Influcenced by 13th century Italian sculptor Nicola Pisano, he frequently examines his own mortality in delicate yet powerful works. Passion seems to flow from his art, whether it is the ecstatic winged image of “The Messenger” poised in mid-ascension, or the male figure of the scribe, clutching his feathered pen with his wings behind him, his face concealed.
Stuart describes his work as “99% observation and 1% application. Looking, thinking, using only one’s imagination to breathe life into an in adamant object, one that has a soul and will speak back to you. That’s what my work is about. It’s not what it should be, but what it could be.” The life-long sculptor says that his work is “a finger-based thought process, while Brandon’s work is a reality-based process. In the end, it’s all about the work.”
The pair have been working together since Brandon was five and Stuart was working on national advertising campaigns. Accompany his father, Brandon learned how to look at scene and had a growing awareness of observation and story. That awareness, Stuart says, has shaped Brandon’s work.
Brandon agrees, saying his father showed him “the fundamentals of image-making, and helped me to understand what might make a good photo. So, to now show my work alongside his feels special, since I have him to thank for helping me to develop my eye and encouraging me to always be curious.”
Brandon describes his own work as “rooted in reality, whereas my father’s work is founded in his imagination. Although that is a drastic difference, I will say that one part of our process is very similar – we spend lots of time observing. My work might be out there in the world and his takes place in his studio, but the art of observation connects our bodies of work together.”
That observation is very much in evidence in photographic work such as “Flip,” a photograph of young acrobats on Venice Beach, in which one sees Brandon’s own take on the human spirit and aspects of ascension. Caught mid-air, surrounded by a resonant golden light, a young boy flips into the sky. He is missing literal wings, but surely has found them figuratively.
Enjoy both artists shows, linked with a profound sense of grace as well as DNA, February 23 through March 30th at Fabrik.