A remembrance that you too must die. It sounds absurd to believe that death and dying can be both sentimental and beautiful. However, that is exactly as I see it. The name Momento Mori comes from the 19th century style of photography where families posed with their deceased loved ones. It might have been the one and only likeness ever produced for the family. Painting was cost prohibitive and photography less so.
I am struck by the tenderness and timelessness families put into their remembrances. The statues and headstones in this collection from Brompton cemetery in London are the physical remnants of loved ones past. They reach toward the sky (or ground in some cases) as a request for an after-life. Proof that belief can out live life.
Reflections of Mind
These images of natural forms out of context represent the way that I see myself.
These reflections are all expressions of my love of nature and my escape to a zone of serenity; in contrast to my life as an urban dweller in San Francisco. The enigmatic images themselves take on meaning beyond the environment from where they came.
They reflect the constant change and delicate movement of light and wind into liquid forms which echo and illuminate. Yosemite is an allegory for the shift in thought that has been taking place in my mind, from restlessness to peace.
—- San Francisco, California, 2017
Biography
Brett’s way of seeing is a reflection of both a spirit of life, and a remembrance that all things must pass. He believes that through art he can change perspectives on what is means to be alive—as well as to die. Living through the AIDS pandemic in San Francisco in the 1980’s and 90’s, he gained his sight into both living and dying with grace and wisdom.
He got to this point in his life by re-invention.
Uncertain about his life in Cleveland as a high-school drop-out, he picked up, moved to San Francisco; and finished his studies at City College of San Francisco and San Francisco State University in Creative Arts. Reinventing himself as an urbane individual.
His work has been seen in Palm Springs, California at Melissa Morgan on El Paseo, in San Francisco at the Harvey Milk Photo Center. He makes his home in San Francisco, California.
