Brad Wilson

American
Bio Statement Books Available More Portfolios

Affinity IV

Brad Wilson: Grand Cayman Blue Iguana #1, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Cheetah #5, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Zebra #4, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Rainbow Lorikeet #2, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Scarlett Macaw #3, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Emerald Tree Boa #1, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Tiger #7, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Chimpanzee #17, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Ground Hornbill #1, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Red Tailed Hawk #3, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: White Lipped Tree Viper #1, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Yellow Collared Macaw #1, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Golden Tiger #4, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: White Cockatoo #1, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Chimpanzee #16, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Sun Conure #2, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Western Screech Owl #4, Espanola, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Jaguar #2, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Scarlett Macaw #1, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Rhino Pit Viper #1, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

Brad Wilson: Baboon #7, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Palm Cockatoo #1, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Palm Cockatoo #3, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Zebra #7, Los Angeles, CA, 2016

Brad Wilson: Catalina Macaw #1, Albuquerque, NM, 2016

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Brad Wilson Bio

Chronology | Solo Exhibitions | Group Exhibitions | Bibliography | Education

Chronology
1989	Met a number of established National Geographic photographers like Alex Webb and David Alan Harvey who inspired me to continue my education in photography.

1992	Moved to New York City and started work as a freelance photo assistant. Over the course of several years, I assisted many top professionals in the industry.

1992	Worked alongside many well-known commercial photographers like Greg Gorman, Sheila Metzner, and Joyce Tenneson. This exposure prompted me to pursue photography as a full time profession.

1996	Started my full time career in New York City as a photographer in both the commercial and fine art genres.

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Solo Exhibitions
2016	AFFINITY, photo-eye Gallery, Santa Fe, NM

2016	Visionnaire Gallery, Milan, Italy

2016	Visionnaire Gallery, Bologna, Italy

2014	Le Méridien, London, England

2014	Avian, PhotoEye Project Space, Santa Fe, NM

2014	Affinity, Gherkin, London, England

2014	Wild Life, Le Meridien, London, England

2014	Affinity, H2A Gallery, Knokke, Belgium

2012	Affinity, Doinel Gallery, London, England

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Group Exhibitions
2017	Art Palm Springs, Palm Springs, CA

2015	Photo LA, Los Angeles, CA

2015	Selected Works, photo-eye Gallery, Santa Fe, NM

2014	AAF Hampstead, London, England

2013	New Art, Paris, France

2013	AAF Singapore, Singapore

2012	Art Beijing, Beijing, China

2012	FotoFever, Brussels, Belgium

2011	LineArt, Ghent, Belgium

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Bibliography

Wild Life. Brad Wilson / Desmond Morris. Prestel, New York, 2014 (photo-eye Cat# PX240H)

Tiere Vor Der Kamera. Brad Wilson / Desmond Morris. Prestel, Munich, 2014

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Education
1982 - 1986	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, BA in Art History, Studio Art, and English

1989 - 1990	Maine Photographic Workshops, Resident Program in Photography

1992 - 1992	Santa Fe Photographic Workshops, Studied studio and location photography

Brad Wilson Statement

Artist Statement
I have always been interested in that precision which creates beauty - the exact instant when mood, stillness, and composition align to make something common suddenly uncommon, something expected suddenly unexpected. In many ways, my entire life in photography has been about trying to find those few elusive moments and capture them. The path to those moments, however, has seldom been straightforward. For me, the primary obstacle is always familiarity. It gives rise to a special kind of blindness - one that prevents me from seeing anything artistically compelling in the repetitive scenes of my everyday life, or along the roads I’ve already traveled. I need journeys into the unknown to restore my vision. This project with animals, and all that it encompassed, was one of those journeys.

For as long as humans have been on this planet, we have had a remarkably complex and constantly changing relationship with the wildlife around us. At times, animals have been our allies, our enemies, our gods, and our food. Often these roles have existed simultaneously across many different cultures and continents. Our destinies have been, and will continue to be, inexorably linked. Perhaps this long shared history is one significant element of the powerful affinity we feel for them. It is impossible to stand a few feet away from an elephant, a tiger, or a chimpanzee, with no barriers between you, and remain unmoved. There is something deeply resonant about this type of encounter that is profound in the moment and primal in its roots. This was the rare and fragile territory I entered as the project began.

From the start, there was something immensely challenging and inspiring about working with these creatures. Up to that point, I had spent my career photographing subjects I largely controlled: professional models, actors, or other noteworthy people. In general, I told them exactly what to do and they did it. Now suddenly I was facing subjects, who, for the most part, did what they wanted with no regard for me or my artistic agenda. Specific verbal directions were replaced by patient waiting and observation - a kind of meditation in the middle of organized chaos. That in itself was exhilarating, but there was something more. What I discovered was a world that we, as humans, have largely abandoned - a place of instinct, intuition, and present moment awareness - a fully natural world, distinct from the increasingly urbanized and digitized landscape that surrounds us. In the midst of our modern human civilization with all its technological complexities, animals still remain stark symbols of a simpler life and a wilderness lost. Perhaps these images can stand as a testament to this other fading world, and remind us, despite the pronounced feeling of isolation that too often characterizes our contemporary existence, that we are not alone, we are not separate - we are part of a beautifully rich and interconnected diversity of life.

Brad Wilson Books
Available from photo-eye

Featured in:

Wild Life. Brad Wilson / Desmond Morris. Prestel, New York, 2014 (photo-eye Cat# PX240)