My goal with the project Overexposure to the Main Character is to examine the cultural norm that has become prevalent in recent years, of being consumed with one's own well being and isolated from community. This phenomenon ties in closely with several factors of modern American society; social media influence, political divides, religious nationalism, and most of all, environment. Not just the environment that one grows up in but actual man made infrastructure and designing a country around cars. At the core of this project is an examination of how cars have made people so independent from community, separating humans from nature and trapping us in a bubble of our own design. My intention is to make work within this project that gives me permission and a guideline to follow in exploring how I can really portray what it is like to observe and be a part of the harmful mindset of the main character.
RECENT
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Oil on wood board
2025
Oil on wood board
2025
The short series, I Only Farm on Blessed Lands, addresses one of my continual themes pervasive in my work as of late. It reflects on the ever present impact of cars’ on American landscapes, drawing parallels between religious justification and the contorted logic that sustains our dependence on a technology actively degrading the very environments that sustain us. Through a balance of humor and critique, the work highlights the absurdity of placing faith in permanence and the ways propaganda has framed car culture as a stable, even inevitable, solution. Fundamentally, these pieces ask why, with near-religious zeal, we continue to trust that technology will redeem us from the very destruction it perpetuates.
2024
2023
2022
Exploratory sketches creating characters, refrences and landscapes.
Using acrylic paint and family photos to reflect and rejuvenate my own childhood and the meaningfulness of the labor poured into scrapbooking by my mother.
2024-2025
Doodles turned into paintings.
INSTAGRAM:
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Originally from Des Moines, Iowa, Brandi earned her BA in Environmental Anthropology and Art from the University of Iowa. Since graduating, she has held several seasonal conservation-based positions across the U.S., an experience that continually informs the environmental themes woven throughout her art. Her work often explores constructed landscapes, the tension between organic forms and digital spaces, and the emotional impact of environmental crises.
Brandi's creative process is intuitive—driven by observation, memory, and experimentation with color and form. She uses painting as a tool for introspection, critique, and connection, aiming to question the systemic disconnection from nature seen in American city planning and everyday life. Her ongoing project, Overexposure to the Main Character, seeks to build a cohesive body of work that expresses these themes while grappling with feelings of apathy, isolation, and hope for change.
Brandi has received several honors for her work, including the Grant Wood Legacy Prize, and has recently been featured in the group show Environmental Ties 2. She continues to evolve her practice, committed to fostering meaningful conversations around nature, community, and the spaces we create.
2019 Shades of Femininity, Kunzler Studios and Gallery, West Des Moines, IA
Group:
2025 RADIANT, Radiant Community Art Space, Eugene, OR
2025 Environmental Ties II, Space at Mugnuson Park Gallery, Seattle, WA
2017 Teen Academy Group show, Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, IA
2018 Teen Academy Group show, Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, IA
2018 Valley High School Outstanding Artist Scholarship
2018 Iowa State Fair People's Choice Honorable Mention in Painting
Last Updated 25.09.05