"My work is about the enjoyment of life and celebrating memories shared with family and friends. I want the viewer to not just view the painting, but to experience it; to create the feeling that they could actually reach into the canvas to touch, smell, and taste the objects.” - Brien Cole
Brien Cole, affectionately known as "The Wine Artist", is a master of the lost art of still life. His works are incredibly detailed, with a photographic and 3D nature that causes jaws to drop wherever they are hung. In the grand tradition of the Dutch masters Cole's work seeks to capture the poignancy of every day moments and the almost spiritual act of sharing food and drink with those you love.
"Unwind" 36x24
The inventive perspective and high detail of his work gives a sense of both narrative and realism. Sometimes making one feel as though they have been shrunk to the size of a mouse and placed on a table during a dinner party; the realism of the work so great one feels as though one could run fingers along the woodgrain of a table or the weave of a tablecloth.
"Jack Daniels Connoisseur" 24x36
Cole's works start out as photographs of carefully arranged and lit scenes. When asked about his process for choosing and arranging a scene Cole says:
"The composition must represent a scene found in real life; at the dinner table among family and friends, or an evening out with that special someone"
The close-cropped view of many of his works, paired with the usual half-finished glasses creates a sense of narrative, a question. "What is being celebrated? by whom?" this deliberately crafted sense of narrative makes the emotional core of these works accessible.
"America's Nebbido" 30x22 "Exquisite Taste" 30x15
Artistic from an early age Brien Cole was encouraged to pursue art by his mother, herself a creatively-minded person. In his youth Cole had the honor of having one of his paintings displayed in the Annapolis State House. Cole spent many years as a computer programer for the Department of Defense before picking the brush back up in 2010. Since then his star has risen at a breakneck pace; his work now resides in many private collections as well as in the tasting rooms of Barboursville, King Family, Perigeaux and Elk Run Vineyards.