leobyrnes.art

Artist and Human Being (Step On Me/Dear Ana, Love Leo)

The products of this performance series left me with 2 walls, each a record of the performance which produced it, representing the collective marks of a community which has built and formed me into the artist I am. This, along with the interior installation and video which make up Dear Ana, Love Leo, is a testament to everything I have done in my time here. It is made of my experiences as they’ve been formed by the environment I’ve spent the last four years of my life in. At many times during my time here I did not think I would finish. But thanks to the shelter, support, and identity building I have had the privilege of having, I made it to the end. I have been shaped by the other human beings who have left a mark on me in coexisting in this community. My thesis is a reflection of who I am. I am a painter, I am a performance artist, I am an individual who has spent 4 years in this community, I am a human being who has lived a full life before, during, and continuing after I emerge from this school and into the world.   

Bio

Coming from a line of creatives from Westport, Massachusetts, Leo Byrnes works in the intersection of painting and performance. When Leo came to art school, he left behind one of his other greatest passions, which was theater. Now those theatrical inclinations present themselves through the embrace of performance art. Leo is currently employed at Muse PaintBar, merging passion for painting and being on a stage with the love of teaching. When not in the studio or at work, he can usually be found in his little apartment in Portland, shared with a lovely partner and persnickety orange cat, Willow.