How the art from one reaches the hearts of many

Bri Harrington always wanted to paint, but never thought it was practical, so she put it off until she couldn’t any longer.

“I feel like it just bubbled out of me, and I just had to paint,” she said. That was in 2020 and the pandemic had begun so she had a lot of time locked up at home.

Bri Harrington is an artist whose main medium is paint. She has a studio located in St. Paul on Grand Ave. Her studio is in a small building with many other artists studios in it, as well.

When Harrington started painting at home she would spend all day locked up due to the pandemic so she filled her days with art. She painted on the floor of her spare bedroom, and she kept painting day after day to the point where she had to call her husband and tell him to maybe not come home yet because she had so many paintings that filled up almost every room in their home.

Harrington realized painting was something she really wanted to pursue and get good at, and so she needed somewhere to make and store all of her art. The first step was finding a studio. She put a couple of inquiries out and all the places she contacted didn’t even have waitlists because they were all so busy. But not all hope was lost. She filled out a form online and later received an email that seemed kind of sketchy but she went and toured the space, and was pleasantly surprised to find all these awesome qualities: a sink, a bathroom, high ceilings, windows, and a nice neighborhood. Harrington also wanted to have a space where people felt comfortable because she teaches classes.

Harrington paints in her studio for the joy of it. She doesn’t like the idea of having to do something just for profit, when she could spread joy instead.

“I feel like people need more moments of joy in their life, and I think sometimes when we really focus on the capitalist, like ‘oh okay if you can’t sell it’ ‘if you’re not making money doing it’ then is it really worth your time or the investment or like the energy? And it really is,” she stated.

“I think that it can be really easy to put off the hobbies that you have as a kid,” said Harrington, but she wants to help people realize that sometimes it can be really good and beneficial to hold on to those hobbies.

Harrington does this by teaching classes at her studio called watercolor for recovering perfectionists. “I just want people to be doing more of the things that make them happy,” said Harrington.

Harrington wants to keep painting and keep sharing but not be attached to an outcome.

“A lot of my work is based around something I’ve been reading or something that I’ve been meditating on, or just like something I’m struggling with in life, and then I’ll paint a series of them.”

Harrington talks about “a growth mindset, the importance of looking at whether you’re approaching things with a fixed attitude or a growth attitude.”

She added, “When I said I was going to pursue art full time, my family was like,” You’re gonna do what? And it took them a couple of years to come around to the idea that oh, this makes you super happy.” Now her dad is making her cradled canvases, and her family is giving her ideas on what they think she should make next.

Harrington believes that it’s important to have something to talk about that is not all the different stresses of life, something that’s just joyful, which she believes is really good for the community.

She explains some of her art pieces: “‘Forest Child’ explores the relationship with our unknown self. The playful inner child and the unconscious mind. The recognition of the parts of ourselves that are unknown, even to us. The idea is that your mind is a forest and all you see is one or two little clearings.

“‘Mini But Mighty’ series, from my research as a wellness coach – the biggest predictor of your well-being is if you have friends/a supportive community. The goal is to buy one to remind someone that they’re loved.

“‘Progress not Perfection,’ is a series about letting go of perfectionism and allowing yourself to enjoy the process of placing marks on the canvas.”

Recently Harrington has enjoyed switching it up a little and is working on some acrylic/carved pieces.