Roger Brown

Born in Alabama, Roger Brown became involved with the Chicago Imagists when he was a student at the Art Institute of Chicago in the 1960s. At that time, Chicago had become an alternative art community that attracted artists rebelling against the current art trends of New York City. Rejecting the ideas behind minimalism and conceptualism, the Imagists instead turned to a figurative style to create art that was sometimes violent and often satirical. Brown's influences varied greatly: Edward Hopper, folk art, surrealism, Japanese art, medieval art, and 1940s-era advertisements and cartoons, to name a few. By combining certain elements from each of these inspirations, Brown's paintings become legible and accessible to all viewers. (SAAM curatorial file)