Items Similar to "I Will Take You to Dinner in Sofia"(2021) by Brian Keith Stephens, Original Oil
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 8
Brian Keith Stephens"I Will Take You to Dinner in Sofia"(2021) by Brian Keith Stephens, Original Oil2021
2021
About the Item
"I Will Take You to Dinner in Sofia" is an original oil painting by Brian Keith Stephens. It depicts two dogs beneath a palm tree.
How to capture the past, present and future at the same time; this is at the center of my work as an artist and as a father, son, friend and lover. As we navigating our daily lives, we must face thoughts, anxieties, joys and emotions from all three of these tenses, and often at the same time. Seemingly opposite emotions -- lust, hatred, desire, love, pride, inhibition -- exists simultaneously between these moments in time. For some of us, some emotions out weigh others, grabbing our attention and transfixing our minds, sometimes taking over the way we live and breath. For myself, the emotions that occupy my mind and capture my energy are that of love, desire, and the fear of hurt or disappointment. And so, at the center of my work are these forceful emotions--they guide my hand to paint and my heart and mind to live. My work explores the emotions that guide us, that pull us and push is and ultimately define who we are, in relation to others and to ourselves.
Lately, what I have been most interested in capturing is how alternative perceptions of ones identity can change the effect these daily emotions. My work speaks to this in two mediums: oil paintings and collage/installation. With the first medium, I do this primarily through mystical imagery juxtaposed with figurative technique. I am using oil paints to create this mystical alter-reality where the human is the animal and the animal is the human.
Growing up in Connecticut, I have always found animals as a vessel for depicting human emotion; I believe in many ways animals are capable of expressing human emotions is a way that is both understandable and mysterious and alluring. Like animals, we are all wild and fearful, but unlike animals, we have to live in this world of rules and normativity. My desires, my emotions, are not always able to fit in the place and society I live, but in my art, I can find a place for those outliers to join forces.
I am captivated by the power of my own emotions, the playful desires and the sometimes dangerous energy that is the essence of the human spirit. We love, we hurt, we laugh and we cry -- it’s this fantastic and sometimes frightful spectrum. The ‘contemporary soldier’, a motif represented in my work through oil on canvas, is my own conception of this power we have to love and to hurt, to build and to break. For me the contemporary soldier is child freed from the gaze of the parent or society, it is the spirit, freed. But also faced with the challenge of the future, even as it moves freely from its past.
The other side of my work involves mixed media and collage. For me, collage is a way to breakdown the space in my life between the emotions of love and hate, and between objects that symbolize these polar emotions. Often my collage works carry motifs of feminine, romantic objects, belong perhaps to figures in my life that have held the role of lover, wife, mother, friend. Together, these notes, clothes, fabrics and photos create a kind of alter of admiration for the women in my life who I have loved, have lost and also have gained. The female identity is central in these works; central because so much of that identity is defined by objects. Objects and their associations create myths, and these myths in turn create these identities. Now in the world, the feminine identify is a source of chaos and socio-political unrest. Her manner of clothing herself, her manner of living, her manner of using her body--all these things have become nationally and globally contested issues. With these collages, I use motifs of nostalgia and history, mixed with personal history to create stories, identities with collaged pasts of the mysterious, eternally captivating famine sex. I believe that as humans, no matter the epoch, have always held this mysterious and wondrous fascination with women. While I play a lot with nostalgia, these collages also speak to the irrelevance of time, and the universality of the female sex. Through installation and collage there is a breaking down and rebuilding of this love of the complex and mysterious human relationships that surround me around me.
At the center of my work and life are these fascinations with myth, the spectrum of human passion, our kinship to the spirit of the wild animal, and challenge of balancing the real with the fanciful. We must balance all of this while also navigating the spectrum of time, the web of past, present and future. My art has been and continues to be my outlet for exploring these themes and conjuring up new ones.
- Creator:Brian Keith Stephens (1973, American)
- Creation Year:2021
- Dimensions:Height: 40 in (101.6 cm)Width: 40 in (101.6 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:Denver, CO
- Reference Number:Seller: 1stDibs: LU1308214738732
Brian Keith Stephens
“I have always been intrigued by how humans used animals as vessels for their stories throughout literature and art, how simple animal qualities help depict human emotions in ways that are understandable, mysterious, and alluring. At the center of my work and life are these fascinations with myth, the spectrum of human passion, our kinship to the spirit of the wild animal, and the challenges of balancing the real with the fanciful. My art has been and continues to be my outlet for exploring these themes and conjuring new ones.” – Brian Keith Stephens
About the Seller
5.0
Platinum Seller
Premium sellers with a 4.7+ rating and 24-hour response times
Established in 1990
1stDibs seller since 2019
683 sales on 1stDibs
Typical response time: 1 hour
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Shipping from: Denver, CO
- Return Policy
Authenticity Guarantee
In the unlikely event there’s an issue with an item’s authenticity, contact us within 1 year for a full refund. DetailsMoney-Back Guarantee
If your item is not as described, is damaged in transit, or does not arrive, contact us within 7 days for a full refund. Details24-Hour Cancellation
You have a 24-hour grace period in which to reconsider your purchase, with no questions asked.Vetted Professional Sellers
Our world-class sellers must adhere to strict standards for service and quality, maintaining the integrity of our listings.Price-Match Guarantee
If you find that a seller listed the same item for a lower price elsewhere, we’ll match it.Trusted Global Delivery
Our best-in-class carrier network provides specialized shipping options worldwide, including custom delivery.More From This Seller
View AllTime Is Not a Machine
By Brian Keith Stephens
Located in Denver, CO
"Time Is Not a Machine," is an original oil painting by Brian Keith Stephens. It is unframed, but ready-to-hang.
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Paintings
Materials
Cotton, Wax, Oil
"Tip Of Your Tongue" - Oil And Wax Elephant Figurative Painting 2025
By Brian Keith Stephens
Located in Denver, CO
“Tip of Your Tongue” by Brian Keith Stephens is an original, handmade oil and wax on cotton painting completed in 2025. Measuring 70 inches high by 40 inches wide with a depth of 1.5...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Impressionist Animal Paintings
Materials
Cotton, Wax, Oil
"Slow Speed" Original Bull Painting by Brian Keith Stephens, Textural Art
By Brian Keith Stephens
Located in Denver, CO
"Slow Speed" is an original painting by Brian Keith Stephens, beautifully composed on cotton using oil and wax. This artwork measures 40 x 54 inches and is presented unframed, ready ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Impressionist Animal Paintings
Materials
Cotton, Wax, Oil
"Looks Like Sun" Original Buffalo Art by Brian Keith Stephens, Western Landscape
By Brian Keith Stephens
Located in Denver, CO
"Looks Like Sun" is an evocative original painting by Brian Keith Stephens, capturing the rugged spirit of a western buffalo. This piece, using oil and wax on cotton, measures 32 x 4...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Impressionist Animal Paintings
Materials
Cotton, Wax, Oil
"Angels And Cowboys" - Oil And Wax Figurative Painting with Horse
By Brian Keith Stephens
Located in Denver, CO
Brian Keith Stephens presents an original, handmade composition titled "Angels and Cowboys", created in 2025. This oil and wax on cotton painting measures 50 inches high by 30 inches...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Impressionist Animal Paintings
Materials
Cotton, Wax, Oil
"Sol" Oil Painting
By Kierstin Young
Located in Denver, CO
Kierstin Young's (US based) "Sol" is an oil painting that depicts a battered white moth and a black background with organic designs in rust tones.
Artist Statement/Bio:
(b. The Yea...
Category
2010s Realist Animal Paintings
Materials
Masonite, Oil
You May Also Like
Feeding a Calf Lovely Farm Scene with Redhead Girl mid 19th Century Oil Painting
Located in Stockholm, SE
As we gaze upon this artwork, we are immediately struck by the warmth and tenderness exuding from the scene. The woman, with a gentle smile on her face, carefully feeds the pet calf, while the redhead girl, her eyes sparkling with excitement, reaches out to touch the adorable creature. The artist's attention to detail is impeccable, with each brushstroke conveying a sense of life and movement to the painting. Nevertheless, the beauty of this painting lies not only in its technical prowess but also in the emotions it evokes. Visual research gets us to authorship of Walter Goodall (1830 - 1889) an British painter. But since the painting is not signed apparently – it is hard to state for sure. Antique oil painting on canvas with stamp for 'Brodie & Middleton, 79 Long Acre...
Category
Late 19th Century Realist Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Wood, Cotton Canvas, Oil
After a successful hunt 1858 Kitchen Genre Scene Swedish Animalist J. Arsenius
Located in Stockholm, SE
Signed lower right: Johan Arsenius and dated 1858 or 1853, attributed Johan Georg Arsenius (1818 - 1903), was a Swedish military man, painter and draftsman. Up for sale is important ...
Category
1850s Realist Animal Paintings
Materials
Wood, Oil, Wood Panel
Unicorn
Located in Deddington, GB
Kate Knott: Unicorn
This original oil painting of an old and wise Unicorn is traditional yet quirky.
It is an oil on primed paper and is framed behind glass.
Size: H:45 cm x W:50 cm
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Animal Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
"Even Fall" a fun oil of a race horse with his jockey falling at horse race
Located in Charleston, US
Scottish artist, David McEwen's oil painting, "Even Fall I" is a fun oil of a race horse with his jockey falling off at a horse race or steeplechase. McEwen is renown for being an e...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Animal Paintings
Materials
Oil
$1,440 Sale Price
20% Off
Dahl Taylor, "Walking to the Track", 24x36 Equine Horse Race Oil Painting
Located in Saratoga Springs, NY
This realistic equine piece, "Walking to the Track", by artist Dahl Taylor is a 24x36 oil painting on canvas featuring 7 jockeys atop their brown thoroughbred race horses making their way down a dirt path towards the Saratoga Springs racetrack in upstate New York. Dappled sunlight enters through the trees, glistening on the horses' coats. Bright green trees...
Category
2010s Realist Animal Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Original Oil Painting of Elephant in the Wild by British Contemporary Artist
Located in Preston, GB
Original Oil Painting of an Elephant in the Wild by British Contemporary Wildlife Artist, Mark Whittaker (b.1964)
Art measures 24 x 18 inches
Frame measures 29 x 23 inches
Category
1990s Realist Animal Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil, Board
$1,626 Sale Price
29% Off