Bryant Giles on His Upcoming Exhibition and Using His Work To Speak Out Against Injustice
Bryant Giles has been making art ever since he can remember. “I started at three years old. I was very quiet growing up, so it was the best way for me to really communicate,” the Chicago-raised and LA-based artist tells Vogue. “Instead of really talking, I would draw.”
In the early stages of his career, Giles would use a "blind" technique, in which he d draw and paint with his eyes closed, until he was finished with the piece–training himself to rely on his memory, rather than on still life subjects, to create. "I was very inspired to remember the world around me so I can confidently work without reference and create my own world."
And in 2016, he shared his world at Congruent Space gallery. In 2017, he landed a shoe collaboration and store takeover with Nike. The same year, Giles showcased his exhibition, "Evolution Backwards," which explored the idea that success comes at a price if we don t remember to slow down. "That’s how I felt then," he says. "Like I was on a treadmill, artistically." The feelings worsening by the time he had showcased his work at Scope Art Fair, in 2018 New York. "I’d realized that I was flat-out exhausted," Giles recalls, explaining the importance of self-care, even amidst busy times. "I vowed to never do that to myself again." He s been using his time to look within, to "[observe] myself, history, my environment that surrounds and those that occupy it," Giles says. "Not to say I didn’t do so before, as that’s the origin of my work, but it became less over the years."
