Peggy Braun
US, born 1935
Braun has worked as an artist since the 1980’s. During that time her interest in photography grew as she took courses at the Maine Media Workshops. Ten years later her work expanded into other mediums, including monoprinting and collage, techniques that still contribute to her photographic works today. In the 90s she exhibited in various galleries and was featured in many publications. Her career in the arts blossomed in the last decade as she became serious about her growth as an artist both creatively and professionally. Braun started exhibiting internationally and she continued to learn new techniques that contributed to her processes. Over the years Braun expanded into ICM (intentional camera movement) and in-camera multiple exposure work, at times combining the two methods.
Photography, for Braun, is an act of visual love. She acquires what is seen and treasures it. After the image is captured and it takes up residence in her computer, she begins the process of creating a new life, sometimes compositing it into a background that expresses the emotional intent of the picture, sometimes texturizing it to accent a mood that will enable the picture to tell its own story. Braun is a printmaker and an experimenter and often combines printmaking and photography along with manipulated materials in addition to the original image. Some examples of these materials include aluminum plates that have transformed tonally and texturally in the dishwasher, or re-painting existing ink from New York Times magazines with citra-solv. She blends these composites in a painterly manner that allows the image to inhabit a different world from its birthplace. The artist and the image inspire one another, joining in a new union and creating an expansion of identity.
In addition to her studies, Braun has also worked with Elizabeth Opalinik, Connie Imboden, John Shaw, Susan Rostow, Seth Resnick, J.P Caponigro, Valda Bailey, Doug Chinnery and Don Messec. She has won a number of prizes including an honorable mention in the Maine Media Workshops photo competition and first prize one year and honorable mentions 4 years for the Julia Margaret Cameron awards.
