Opening Reception: Davon Brantley, Duo Elyse Morckel and Denzel D. Washington, and Matt Kurtz

The Vivid Process of Grief in Davon Brantley’s Midsommar in Granada Gardens 

Artist-in-Residence Davon Brantley presents Chapter 2: Midsommar in Granada Gardens, a collection of paintings in conversation with purgatory and grief. The tension of vibrant colors and muted grey tones represent the blending of emotions surrounding the loss of a loved one. Brantley’s characters move with dramatic effect, illuminating the intimate nature of confronting grief. The exhibit explores the limbo of being at once void of emotion and yet overwhelmed by emotion in combination with Brantley’s meditations on death, life, sexuality, masculinity, colorism, and racial stereotyping. A deeply personal exhibit, Midsommar In Granada Gardens is a visual blueprint of how Brantely has analyzed grief in the wake of his grandmother’s death.

“I lead the audience through my mind as if they were watching a play, utilizing dramatic compositions, absurd realism, and characters that act out certain emotions and themes in…