Friend #31 - Brandon

Brandon is onto something big.  He can feel it in his bones…as if his dreams are finally coming to fruition.

He is an artist, a multimedia body artist.  What is that?  We met through friends so before our meeting, Brandon sent me an extraordinary image of a person dressed as a demigod, who seemed like they would fit in the Marvel universe.  But the image was remarkably life-like, as if they had walked out of a movie.  My first reaction was that it was cool, but I thought it to be rather large to be tattooed on someone.  That shows you how much I know!  The image Brandon sent me was of an actual person Brandon had visually transformed through the use of body paint and other elements you’d find at a craft shop.  He then poses his models and photographs them to create works of art that are simply amazing.

He’s always been a creator.  In fact, at this point in his life, he is more comfortable creating than not creating.  He never wants to retire.  And he’s worked in virtually every medium:  drawing, painting, sculpting, acting, modeling, video production, photography.  If you can think it, Brandon has probably done it.  He is an artist in every sense of the word.  But for much of his life, he has been the quintessential starving artist, just waiting for his big break…and he’s learned a lot of lessons along the way.

For eighteen years, Brandon worked in IT.  It was hard to picture him hiding his talent behind a computer screen as he sat next to me, gracefully draped onto the chair, sipping chai tea with a sparkly silver scarf wrapped around his neck.  His IT job paid the bills while he honed his craft.  He quit his job once to become a full time artist but eventually, had to go back to work.  He felt like failure…yet it wasn’t in his nature to stop creating so he persisted.  And he began working smarter. 

Building his following on social media was a no brainer.  I think everyone does that, but Brandon took things a step further.  He found a website called patreon.com that allows regular people to sponsor artists via a monthly donation.  No longer do you have to be wealthy to sponsor art.  Patreon gives the masses the ability to financially sponsor beauty in the world.  Brandon used this site to build an income for himself so that he could eventually become a full time artist once again.  It didn’t happen overnight.  It was a long, tedious process but it does give him a way to feel more financially secure and concentrate on the projects that mean the most to him.

Brandon has also grown his popularity so when Brandon announces a project, he has people applying to be his muse.  That way the artwork is commissioned through them for what I think is a nominal fee…and Brandon doesn’t have to worry about not getting paid.  Everything is paid for in advance.  He has literally created a paying market for his own art.  So now, when he publishes a book of portraits, the profits from the book is the financial cherry on top, instead of a black hole of debt.  I think it is brilliant marketing at its finest.

And his art is in demand.  Who wouldn’t want him to paint and photograph them?  It is a one-of-a-kind experience!  And even his books receive accolades.  One fan had a book shipped to Singapore because the buyer, who lived in Vietnam, knew that if Vietnamese officials opened the book and saw the nudity, it would be immediately banned and not allowed into the country.  By shipping it to Singapore, he could smuggle it in by driving it over the border.  That’s the type of devotion that Brandon’s work brings out in people…and Brandon giggles that his work is considered contraband. 

And Brandon, himself, is non-stop.  Because his medium involves people, he doesn’t have the luxury of having a block in creativity.  He must be spontaneously brilliant at all times because that’s what his customers expect…and so that is what he delivers.  Sure, there are moments he’s painting someone in a bar and a drunken patron sticks their fingers in his fresh paint.  He still has moments where he feels underappreciated...but that just makes him human.

His life today seems like a pipe dream, a figment of the imagination, from where he started, the shy, effeminate boy who was often bullied in school.  But today, Brandon is confident and courageous.  And he’s winning at his dream simply because through all the hardship, he persisted…and he’s come out on top.

If you would like to see Brandon’s work, go to www.brandonmcgill.com.  There is nudity…but it’s awesome!