John Brosio

Painter John Brosio blends elements of science fiction and surrealism to depict unsettling monster attacks, alien invasions, larger-than-life animals, and natural disasters inserted into scenes of everyday life. For his well-known series of tornado paintings, Brosio spent three years chasing storms in Texas, California, and the Great Plains and painted dark, dramatic twisters whose exaggerated scale asserts the dominance of the natural world over human civilization. His painting of Darth Vader, Redemption (2006), was used as a poster to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Star Wars saga. Brosio attended ArtCenter College of Design and later studied under Wayne Thiebaud at the University of California, Davis. Originally drawn towards a career in film special effects, Brosio embraces this cinemagraphic influence, working at massive scale and placing fantastical and foreboding tableaux amid suburban landscapes that evoke movie sets.