Behnaz Sohrabian

OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma – JRB Art at the Elms presents three solo shows by Behnaz Sohrabian, John Brandenburg and Janet Massad. The exhibitions will open with a reception from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. on Friday, August 5th, 2016 during the Paseo’s First Friday Gallery Walk and continue through Sunday, August 28th. 

Behnaz Sohrabian was born & raised in Tehran, Iran where her life long relationship with art began. This passion drove Behnaz to complete her Bachelor’s in Art and Applied Chemistry and a Masters in Art Studies.

As a young woman Behnaz moved to Oklahoma to be closer to family. When asked to describe her work, Behnaz comments “My work is about me, my life – about being a woman.” She claims “I paint women as people, strong people with depth & power. They are delicate & sensitive, sure – but not weak.”  She hopes that her body of work that is about the female character and form can help dispel the objectivation of women that is so prevalent in our society. Working toward that goal, Behnaz often titles her paintings with the name of Greek Goddesses to emphasize the relationship between form and purpose. 

Behnaz’s aim is to paint simply, apply easy brush strokes, and to emphasize the dynamics of light and shadow between the subject and background. In addition to the female form, her upcoming exhibit at JRB Art at The Elms will include paintings of horses, landscapes and flowers. Behnaz’s work has won Best in Show for a record breaking four consecutive years.

John Brandenburg is a highly regarded Norman artist working in acrylic, collage, charcoal, ink and pastel.  His work is included in the permanent collection of the State of Oklahoma and has been exhibited in museums and galleries throughout the state. In addition to being a painter, he is a poet and playwright who recently won a Governor's Award for his journalistic arts writing. 

When asked about his style and technique John states I primarily paint acrylic because it dries fast. Among the techniques John uses are finger-painting using surgical-dishwashing type gloves; applying layers of paint over dry or still wet colors with a palette knife; creating outlines using a liner brush; and sometimes mixing a textural medium with colors.

John says, “I am calling this show of my paintings and mixed media drawings “Noble Figures” because most of them contain figurative as well as semi-abstract and organic or landscape-like content, and I worked on them at the studio-house that my wife, Janet Massad, and I own in Noble.” Many of the drawings on paper were begun in a life drawing group John coordinates at Firehouse Art Center in Norman, or at Geatches Studio in Oklahoma City.

Janet Massad received her Master of Fine Arts in Ceramics from the Claremont Graduate School in California. She was also technical assistant to Colin Pearson in his London studio in 1988. Janet received an individual artist fellowship from the City of Pasadena for her work in clay. She has taught at, among others, Pasadena City College, Goddard College in Vermont, New Mexico State University and The Chautauqua Institute in New York as resident ceramics faculty. Janet has exhibited her work nationally. In addition to being a ceramicist, Janet is a painter and writer, enthusiastically exploring techniques with color, materials and heat. Painting informs her ceramic surfaces and serves as a visual distraction.

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JRB Art at The Elms presents a diverse roster of emerging, established, and internationally exhibited artists who create in a wide range of media including: paintings, drawings, sculpture, ceramics, glass, fine crafts, functional objects, fiber art and photographs. This 8,000 square foot award-winning gallery in Oklahoma City’s Paseo Arts District changes its exhibits monthly in a gracious environment that fosters a dialogue between the arts and the larger community while providing quality art for first time buyers as well as individual, corporate and museum collections.