Jerry Browning – MA – 1954
“How do I feel when I’m painting? For me painting is like being in a state of alertness, of heightened awareness, a sort of abstract state where everything feels clearer, more defined.”
Jerry Browning was born in Dorset in 1954 and educated at Dauntsey School, Wiltshire. As a student at the Exeter and Reading Colleges of Art he painted under the tutelage of Sir Terry Frost and Patrick Heron, who both awarded him First Class degrees in Fine Art. He worked alongside acclaimed painters Patrick Proctor, Albert Irvin, Adrian Heath and Gillian Ayres.
He was a founder member of Spacex Studios in Exeter and helped to convert the old warehouse into art studios and a gallery. He became immersed in American abstract expressionism and the exciting new art of Mark Rothko, Willem de Kooning, Franz Kline and Robert Montgomery. On his return to the UK Browning joined the famous colony of British artists in St Ives, where he continued to explore the growing American influence and went on to further develop his own unique style of abstract expressionism.
A natural, instinctive painter, Browning’s stunning abstract canvases vibrate with a raw energy that draws the viewer in and provokes an emotional response. His work is powerful and full of light, drawing upon his experience of living in wild and remote areas on the west coast of Ireland, Morocco, America and Cornwall.
Browning has been the subject of regular international exhibitions. His paintings are held in many private collections around the world, most notably by the House of Hermès.
His influences include John Hoyland, Henri Matisse, Willem de Kooning, Mark Rothko, Robert Motherwell and Franz Kline.
Exeter College of Art ; graduated BA Hons 1st Class (awarded by Patrick Heron) 1976-1980
Reading University; graduated MA Fine Art (awarded by Sir Terry Frost) 1973-1976
Founder Member, Spacex Studios, Exeter 1980-1982
Browning has had many Solo Exhibitions in UK as well as New York and has been recognised as one of the top abstract artists of his day.
