Allen Brewer “Verbatim”

In the months leading up to the opening of his MAEP exhibition “Verbatim,” St. Paul–based artist Allen Brewer collected short written descriptions of artwork by MIA visitors. Paying close attention to the words in each description, he took them back to his studio to inspire new paintings, drawings, and sculptures. The number of works in the gallery will increase during the show, as he adds new works of art every two weeks. “Verbatim” proves to be a fascinating study of the differences between seeing and writing, and an exploration of the limits of language as they relate to describing art objects and museum experiences.

Video created for the Minneapolis Institute of Arts by Clint Bohaty