Philip Brou
ON HIS ART
I love the contradictory nature of painting. It is a language that constantly undermines itself. In my opinion, painting is not a discipline suited for finding solutions, but it is unbelievably good at perpetually generating questions.
ON MAKING ART IN MAINE
Last weekend I went for a long walk on a beach and did not see a single person, not even footsteps. The ability to easily get away from everyone is one of the things I most enjoy about Maine. There is also an interesting sense of desolation in Maine. Andrew Wyeth put it best when he said, “Maine to me is almost like going to the surface of the moon. I feel things are just hanging on the surface and that it’s all going to blow away. In Maine, everything seems to be dwindling with terrific speed."
ON THE PAINTING DEPARTMENT
MECA&D’s painting department is small, but I believe it is outstanding. The faculty and staff are all working artists with very different types of studio practices, which allows us to teach a wide variety of approaches and methodologies. This is supplemented by a world class visiting artist roster, including Helen Molesworth, Robert Hobbs, Sam Messer, and David Humphrey. The student work resulting from this rigorous environment is as good as any program in the country.