Arden Bendler Browning

Arden Bendler Browning (born 1975) is an American visual artist based in Philadelphia. While primarily known for her paintings, Bendler Browning's work spans various media, including works on paper, paintings incorporating digital technologies such as virtual reality and animation, and standalone virtual reality applications. She has also completed several public art projects.

Early life and education Bendler Browning earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art from Carnegie Mellon University's School of Art in 1997. In 1996, Bendler Browning studied abroad at Temple Rome in Italy. She later moved to Sydney, Australia and earned a Master of Studio Art degree from Sydney College of the Arts in 2000. Bendler Browning earned a Master of Fine Arts in Painting from Tyler School of Art in 2003.

Career Style and influence

Bendler Browning is known for dense, energetic paintings incorporating layers of vibrant color influenced by digital media. Her abstract paintings and virtual reality work recall movement through the urban and natural environments. Bendler Browning's work has explored the overlap between painting and photography as well as digital and analog gestures and spaces.

Gallery representation

Gallery representation has included Bridgette Mayer Gallery in Philadelphia, Galleri Urbane in Dallas, and Tinney Contemporary in Nashville.

Exhibitions

Bendler Browning's work has been exhibited in many solo exhibitions at commercial, non-profit, and academic gallery spaces throughout the United States and several group exhibitions in museums in the Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and Mid-Atlantic region.

Early career highlights (2004-2009) Early career highlights include participation in several exhibitions: Junto at Fleisher/Ollman Gallery (2004), Philadelphia Selections: 5 at the Galleries at Moore College of Art (2004), and Solo Series at Abington Art Center (2009).

Tyvek paintings and first museum exhibition (2010–2012) Her first solo exhibition with Bridgette Mayer Gallery, Clickpath, included several monumentally sized Tyvek paintings as well as a collaborative interactive animation. Her large Tyvek paintings also were featured in

Seepages at Whitespace, Atlanta (2010) Wind Challenge Exhibition at Fleisher Art Memorial (2010) Splinters at Delaware Contemporary (2011) Urbanism:Re-Imagining the Lived Environment at Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (2011).

Panel paintings and works on paper (2014-2019)

Selected exhibitions include:

Young and Fun:Abstraction at Bridgette Mayer Gallery (2014) The Death of Impressionism? Disruption and Innovation in Art at Michener Art Museum(2016–2017) Relativity, Knauer Gallery, West Chester University (2017) All at Once, Galleri Urbane, Dallas, Texas (2018) All at Once, Tinney Contemporary, Nashville, TN (2018) Art on Paper 2019 at Weatherspoon Art Museum (2019) Places to Be, Tinney Contemporary, Concept Space, Nashville, TN (2019)

Mixed media and virtual reality work (2019-2024)

Selected exhibitions include:

it’s the new everything at Pennsylvania State University (2019) Sightreading, Galleri Urbane (2019) Escape Routes, Tinney Contemporary (2021) Wayfinding, Bridgette Mayer Gallery (2022 Off-Screen, Galleri Urbane, Dallas, TX(2023) Black Forest, Tinney Contemporary, Nashville, TN (2024)

Selected public art Bendler Browning has created several works of public art in the City of Philadelphia. In 2017, Nonstop, a permanent Percent for Art commission, was installed at the Philadelphia International Airport.

Critical reception Critics describe Bendler Browning's work as being memorable for combining a multitude of perspectives, materials, and mark making. She has been an artist in residence at Soaring Gardens/Ora Lerman Trust in 2004, Interlude Artist Residency in 2022, and Pouch Cove Foundation in 2022.

Public collections Bendler Browning's work is included in the West Collection, The Pennsylvania Convention Center, and Toyota.