Brown, Irby
Irby Brown grew up in Paris, Texas and, after a stint in the army, attended the Dallas Art Institute. There,
he studied with Olin Travis, who had taught at the Chicago Art Institute. Travis was also a graduate of that
legendary school. "My training was much along the line of the Chicago Art Institute," states the artist.
"It was a chance for me to learn about their ideas and color concepts, which for me was very important.
One of the things that's always attracted me to nature is the color and light. I feel that Olin Travis was one
of the very fine teachers of these concepts in this country."
Perhaps because of this thorough grounding in his craft, Irby Brown has developed a career which
embodies the goal of many artists: "I'm making a living at what I like to do, which to me is almost
miraculous. I've been doing it full time, apart from any other work, for about sixteen years. Part of our
thinking in society is that we have to teach or be a commercial artist. But circumstances brought me to
a place where I said, "I'm going to be a painter. If I don't make it, at least I've tried." So I broke away and
focused on being a professional painter.
"There are so many things out here that I love to paint. The way I like to work is to go out to a general
area and look around for something that appeals to me. Normally it is light. The subject is secondary.
I'm looking at the way the light falls on it, and the form that it translates into. That really is what continues
to fascinate me: light, color and form. There's so much of it out there, you never exhaust the supply."
he studied with Olin Travis, who had taught at the Chicago Art Institute. Travis was also a graduate of that
legendary school. "My training was much along the line of the Chicago Art Institute," states the artist.
"It was a chance for me to learn about their ideas and color concepts, which for me was very important.
One of the things that's always attracted me to nature is the color and light. I feel that Olin Travis was one
of the very fine teachers of these concepts in this country."
Perhaps because of this thorough grounding in his craft, Irby Brown has developed a career which
embodies the goal of many artists: "I'm making a living at what I like to do, which to me is almost
miraculous. I've been doing it full time, apart from any other work, for about sixteen years. Part of our
thinking in society is that we have to teach or be a commercial artist. But circumstances brought me to
a place where I said, "I'm going to be a painter. If I don't make it, at least I've tried." So I broke away and
focused on being a professional painter.
"There are so many things out here that I love to paint. The way I like to work is to go out to a general
area and look around for something that appeals to me. Normally it is light. The subject is secondary.
I'm looking at the way the light falls on it, and the form that it translates into. That really is what continues
to fascinate me: light, color and form. There's so much of it out there, you never exhaust the supply."
