Today we’d like to introduce you to Nate Brumett.
Hi Nate, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
It’s a mix of beginnings for me. My earliest memories were of me and my dad drawing in the back row of a church to make the time pass faster. He (my dad) was an incredible artist, who for various reasons had sheltered away his talents. I was a rambunctious trouble child, who couldn’t sit still if even lives depended on it. It was a lot of small moments of sharing time to watch him paint, and join in that made me fall in love with art. He laid the foundation for an incredible amount of creative thinking that I hadn’t come to recognize or appreciate until my early twenties. He would take the erasers away from me so as I had no way to undo “mistakes”. Forcing me to discover alternate ways to save a piece or visualize to not make mistakes at all. He gave me the freedom to draw on my skin and the walls in my room. Allowing me the space to think without judgment, but not without guidance.
Fast forward several years, I was digging my fingers into any aspect of art I could think of. Silversmithing, wood carving, sculpting, photography, ink drop, calligraphy, constant sketching. All fun hobbies, but none realistically impactful. I had a deep longing for some form of what in my mind was greater, and no means to an end. I later, after a long emotional falling out with my passions sold of most of what I owned and flew to Italy. The plan in mind being to find some work and hike my ass off, until Id become lost enough in the wonders of European landscape to figure out my life goals. And my god did it work. There is an incredible value in severing all ties and leaving home. I slept under a bridge, slept in a ditch on the side of a highway, shared champaign with strangers at the top of Vesuvius (then slept in the volcano on a vent), made friends, freeclimbed a cliff at 2,000 meters, ate well, starved, blah blah blah you name it. I needed time, and along the way I photographed and drew in a sketchbook constantly. I had no internet unless provided by restaurant Wi-Fi. So, there wasn’t much else to do aside survey the breadth of your thoughts, and jot them down.
When Id run out of funds, I came home late 2022 and later delved into painting seriously for the first time. I found it gave me the room I needed, and the emotional “Awe” factor I had been craving. Although only having a little over a year’s experience, I’ve been fortunate enough to maintain a steady flow of commissions and personal works.
Would it have been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No. I’ve failed in every aspect a billion times. I feel all artists, if not everyone on the planet, can relate to pulling yourself from the gutter of your ambitions and convincing yourself to try again. Aside the melodrama of dark nights, and broken relationships. Id tried and failed to make my way in the world of jewelry design. Creating a brand that ultimately never made it off the ground because I lacked one thing, talent. I could carve the wax to make moderately fun designs, but the casting process is a hellscape demanding perfection. Whatever skill dictates the capability to cast, I didn’t have it. The harsh truth had been facing me from the beginning, but I was too stubborn to give it up. Either swallow your “self-taught” pride and put in the time and money to join a jewelry design school, or move on… I took the latter haha. Smithing made me furiously angry, Id majorly taken it up because I assumed it would make me rich, and no art should be solely consistent of hatred.
I appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I try to be a jack of all trades, but Id say I’m most known for my sketching, larger scale painting, and poetry. I feel I’m known for being obsessed, regardless of art style or project, I don’t stop until I feel it’s encapsulated the feeling assigned to it. I also feel I’m known for my psychological self-portraits. My most proud work by far is “Gorn” an acrylic cubist self-portrait made off and on over 6 months. Occasionally while trying to sleep my brain won’t shut up until I’ve sketched or made an idea. “Gorn” being the posterchild of this dilemma at two in the morning. Inspiration strikes at all hours, and it’s a waste of experience to let it pass unrecorded.
I’m not sure what sets me apart. To myself I am just myself. Id guess to others it would be the strange way I act or live. I’ve always chosen capability over comfort. My bedroom being nothing but canvasses, paint, and a twin-size mattress. And my shoes usually so worn in that my toes welcome the sunlight. I’ve never been afraid to try much in life. Especially when it came to expressing ideas. I’d say, what sets me apart is my internal understanding, and willingness to continuously if not endlessly fail. Failure is the greatest gift ever found, created, or given.
Do you have any advice for those just starting?
Delve your time and energy into what gives you not only passion but purpose. There is a physical, visceral feeling given when something truly connects with you. Find that and take hold. All things aside time can be replaced, so don’t waste a second of it. I don’t mean to slave away; everything has a balance. What I mean is spend your life meaningfully, speak with people who inspire you, make connections and study what itches in the corner of your mind. Push your body and mentality to extremes. You shouldn’t guess the limits of your capability; you should find it in its pursuit. Life is too short to not have adventures that risk its end.
The best advice I’d ever received, which surprisingly came from a less than welcoming artist Id met and spoken with in Florence, was this. “Maintain a job while making your art. As attractive as it is to throw yourself headfirst into your dreams. The vast majority crash violently and go broke.” Dull, paraphrased and unattractive, but truthful. I hated the thought of wasting another minute in a 9-5 but I needed money, and sadly canvases don’t grow on trees. Often most it’s the boring, tedious and unassuming answers, that bear the highest truth.
Swallow your pride, open yourself to learning from all sources. Especially when stuck in a well-deserved rut.
Never drink liquids while hitting the breaks on a highway. Don’t play leapfrog with a unicorn. I have a sneaky feeling the inspiration for the mandala is just how the cones of your eyes process light.
And the answer to the cosmic question “Who am I?” is just “Who have you chosen to be?”
Also, if you have an interest in the literary arts… Take a class or study how grammar and punctuation work. Youd be amazed at how stressful it is to fill out an interview when most of your grammatical knowledge is based off your speech pattern, and what visually looks right. I am a high school dropout. Bear with me through my verbal shortcomings.
Contact Info:
- Website: youlooktired.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nate.brumett/?hl=en
