About

Tara Murino-Brault was born and raised in Chicago IL. She received her BFA in Graphic Design at The University of Illinois at Chicago and her MFA in Visual Studies with an emphasis on Printmaking and Book Arts at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Currently, she is an artist and educator who resides in the Portland Oregon area. She currently teaches a broad range of classes at Portland Community College that include Intaglio Printmaking, Relief Printmaking, Screenprinting and 2D foundational classes. In addition to her teaching, she has a thriving personal art practice where she actively showcases her work as a maker.

Artist Statement

Since the beginning, my artistic exploration has examined the interplay of symbolism and archetypes to unravel the layers of human identity with a particular focus on the nuanced experience of woman. While examining universal symbolism that transcends cultural boundaries, I’ve also created a personal visual symbolic vocabulary that challenges and redefines the notions of femininity, religion, cultural power and powerlessness, mortality, and rebirth. I enjoy playing with opposing elements such as light and dark, reason and folly, or good and evil, and the interdependence of each to define the other.

Symbolism has become a potent tool in my work, a language through which I articulate the subtle and profound aspects of the feminine journey. By incorporating symbols rich in cultural history, I invite viewers to decipher a visual lexicon that goes beyond the surface, delving into the collective unconscious to unearth the shared truths about identity, womanhood, and the human experience.

As a marker and life longer learner, I use the variety and versatility of printmaking to explore my world and art through processes that allows me to produce graphic images with different emphases, one vibrant in layered color, and the other rich with velvety blacks. I enjoy the tactile quality of making prints as well and find that the physical nature of the process creates an extra layer of definition and meaning in each print.