BRANDY KAYZAKIAN-ROWE - AN EYE FOR THE BLUES
Blues Matters! Magazine interview

Following our first interview with Brandy, there was then a hiatus of a few months as she busied herself with opening a gallery space in Portland. But Blues Matters! caught up with Brandy again at the start of 2008…

Check out issue 44 of Blues Matters! to view examples of Brandy’s painting work! (included in the above image)

BM: A lot of changes in your life since we last spoke. You have opened your own gallery in Portland Oregon… How did that come about?

Portland, OR is a thriving and artistic town that has so many opportunities, one of which is Everett Station Lofts, a live/work loft/gallery space downtown in the Oldtown/Chinatown neighbourhood. My husband and I attended a photography opening for Peter Best and after talking to the gallery owner, we realized that he lived in the gallery. I was lucky enough to get one of the ground floor gallery spaces, ironically, that was right next door to that very gallery. Everett Station Lofts & Galleries is part of the First Thursday art walk that happens year round.

BM: What has the response been to your new space?

Wonderful, really. I have seen people of all ages and walks of life come through the gallery doors. My biggest joy is when people see themselves in a piece of art. I want to create paintings and photography that expresses my love of cultures and people. I am endlessly interested in everyone around me and find it all overflowingly beautiful.

BM: I see that you are now moving strongly into new media and methods. Is there something you can do with the new materials that you couldn’t through photography?

I took photos just about everyday while I lived in Memphis. I woke up every morning and my first thoughts were the performances I was to see that night, or the film I was to develop. When I moved to the Pacific Northwest, while breathtaking, it was not my home and I lost my desire to take photos. So after about a month or two of feeling stagnant and homesick I began to paint for the first time. I never took painting classes in school but it was now my way to express myself, beginning by painting images from my photographs from the Delta. I painted Bluesmen, juke joints and colourful people met along the way. The first two of these Delta paintings sold just this past December, and it was bitter sweet to see them go.

I began to paint using watercolors for the first time in January 2007. I experimented with watercolors for several months and then moved back to acrylics. Just recently, with the sales of my paintings, I purchased oil painting supplies and have begun to study techniques. After some work in oils, I have found that my true medium, in painting, is acrylic. I love the bold colors and quick drying time... When I feel I need a break, or think of an idea that calls for it, I break out my watercolor supplies! To further the case of my ever wandering mind, the past few days I have had a resurgence in my desire to take photos and found a 2-year-old spent roll of film in my camera bag... After having it developed I discovered photos from my last performance that I attended, Alvin Youngblood Hart; what a way to get back into photography!

BM: Are you still in touch with the Blues scene in Memphis and Clarksdale? Is there any similar scene in Oregon these days?

If you are there for a day or ten years, you can't help but create a second family in Mississippi. There are so many people that I think of often and miss dearly, I e-mail and write many... I am lucky some of the musicians that I met and befriended are touring and have come to Portland once or twice to perform with me up front. As for Blues in Oregon, I do know there is a very large annual riverfront Blues festival, and my Delta Blues photography show was one of my best attended openings. I think my severe sense of homesickness for the Delta has caused me to be a bit of a hermit when it comes to venturing out into the Portland Blues world, something I hope my renewed love of photography will remedy.

BM: Last time around, you spoke of trips to Italy and other parts of Europe; have you managed to exhibit in Europe yet? What was the response?

Funnily enough, about a week ago I began creating submission packets to send out to galleries across the USA and Europe. This will be my first attempt at submitting my photography abroad, so we may need another follow-up in the future to fully answer this one!

BM: Do you feature the work of other artists in your gallery? What determines your choices?

My work is shown in the gallery about half of the time, alternating with other artists, of which, I have shown eight, so far, and have several lined up for 2008. I want the gallery to be a place that furthers peace and unity, shares culture and provides a platform to learn from each other.