About the Artist

Artist Statement

The goal of my work is to portray the creative, curious, and adventurous spirit of humanity as well as its beauty with an optimistic view of the future through narrative paintings in a representational style depicting the innate sense of curiosity and optimism of children, scenes of idealized every day life set in an imagined, possible, near-future, and narrative landscapes (Rocketscapes) featuring or integrated into science fiction elements. I often use rockets, astronauts, and near future settings either as symbols of optimism and a sense of adventure or as a lens through which to view our current world from a new perspective. I love to juxtapose large feats of human engineering and architecture against beautiful natural elements and landscapes, often integrating one completely within the other, in an attempt to show that these two forms of beauty not only can coexist, but ultimately compliment each other.

On Rocketscapes

‘Rocketscape’ (as coined by me to describe this series)  Noun. A landscape painting incorporating a juxtaposed rocket, astronaut, or both, or a painitng of a landscape which is incorporated into the interior of a large space ship or space station. May more broadly also refer to a painting of a landscape on a planet other than earth or viewed from orbit rather than from the ground.

Yes, this series of paintings is intended to be light hearted, whimsical, and even a bit silly…but it is also intended to be beautiful and, hopefully, inspiring.

Perhaps counter-intuitively, futuristic settings for otherwise familiar scenes are meant to highlight the timelessness of the human desire to explore, learn, discover, and understand more about ourselves and our place in the universe.  A painting of a breathtaking landscape with a space ship in the distance, or of an astronaut watching a sunrise on Earth hopefully encourages the viewer to see the natural beauty we have all around us from a new perspective, as the truly incredible and rare thing it is, even in a galaxy of wonders.

Artist Bio

Bryan Larsen was born in 1975 in Salt Lake City, UT.

If you asked 8-year-old Bryan what he wanted to be when he grew up, he probably would have said “an astronaut”, although he actually spent most of his free time drawing.

All through school, Bryan was known for his artistic talent, and was fortunate to be encouraged and supported by his parents and teachers. After graduation, he considered a career in children’s book illustration and in aerospace engineering before finally making the decision to pursue fine art full time.

Influenced by painters like William Bouguereau, Alma Tadema, Maxfield Parrish, and Norman Rockwell, Bryan wanted to create paintings in a realistic style that were not only beautiful, but also told a story…paintings that celebrated human knowledge, mathematics, architecture, science and engineering. His love of space was on display from the beginning (his first painting to sell portrayed a father and son watching the launch of a Saturn V rocket) and over the years, his themes began to coalesce around a sense of optimism and excitement about the future, with a focus on curiosity, creativity, innovation, and the drive to explore new frontiers...all while showing an appreciation for natural beauty.

Often inspired by his kids, many of Bryan’s recent paintings depict children engaged in acts of curiosity or discovery, often in settings that juxtapose natural landscapes with futuristic elements, or that are set in a romanticized, possible future.

Bryan says the goal of his work is not to paint science fiction, but to create a visual world that inspires the viewer… a world the viewer can imagine for themselves or their children, no matter who they are…a world that is exciting and beautiful, full of possibility, and worth working towards. He likes to leave parts of the narrative of each painting open to the viewer’s interpretation in order to encourage them to step into that world and fill in the details.

Perhaps counter-intuitively, he hopes the exotic, futuristic settings for otherwise familiar scenes highlight the timelessness of the human desire to explore, learn, discover, and understand more about ourselves and our place in the universe, and that an astronaut, their space ship in the distance, watching a sunrise on Earth might encourage the viewer to see the natural beauty we have all around us from a new perspective, as the truly incredible and rare thing it is, even in a galaxy of wonders.

Bryan is currently represented by Rehs Contemporary Gallery in NY and Quent Cordair Fine Art in JAckson, WY