About
Colleen RJC Bratton lives and works in Seattle, Washington. She graduated from Seattle University with a degree in Visual Arts and Philosophy.
Colleen RJC Bratton’s (she/they) work is inspired by personal meditation. Seeking parallels between the human body and the larger natural body, Bratton creates biomorphic sculptures, installations and drawings where these shared experiences exist in one form. Through a physical and spiritual communion between Bratton’s body and its surrounding natural environment they pull visual, textural and temperature markers. This natural environment takes on many forms: the sun, the cosmos, the garden, the Earth. Communal recordings are then bolstered by research into these bodies’ symbolism, roles within history and their statuses amidst climate change. Bratton works primarily with found, responsibily gathered materials (flowers, plants, fabric, wood, vintage paperweights, glass and paint). Their creations provide immersive experiences for viewers to consider routes of empathy between themselves and the non-human life forms surrounding them.
C.V.
Colleen RJC Bratton
b. 1989 Kennewick, WA
Seattle, WA
colleenrjcbratton[at]gmail.com
Education
2012 BA with honors, Visual Arts and Philosophy, Seattle University
Selected Exhibitions
Current/Upcoming:
Soft Power: Textiles, Heritage and Activism, Tacoma Art Museum, Tacoma, WA, October 13th, 2023 - September 1st, 2024 (Group)
Flowers, Carnation Contemporary, Portland, OR, November 2024 (Group)
Meandro, Tlaxcala, Mexico City, Mexico, February 2025 (Group)
Past:
Solo + Collaborative Exhibitions
2024 Microcosmic, The Vestibule, Seattle, WA (with Kate Rusek)
Edgeless Burial, 4Culture Gallery, Seattle, WA (solo)
2023 Seepage, SOIL Art Gallery, Seattle, WA, Opens now until July 1st, 2023 (Duo show with SK Reed)
2022 How Much Does Mourning Burn?, sunspot, Des Moines, WA
2021 The Fluidity of the Universe, Storefronts, Seattle, WA
Colleen RJC Bratton, Prism, Seattle, WA
Endometrial Atmosphere, SOIL, Seattle, WA
2019 Creature Comforts, Strobel & Sands, Seattle, WA (duo show with Brooklyn Witteman)
Sun-kissed to Sunburned, Stumptown Artist Fellowship (exhibition), Portland, OR
Empirical Sun, SPAC, Seattle, WA
2018 Sanctuary, Bethany Presbyterian, Seattle, WA
Good Mourning, SOIL, Seattle, WA
Far Out, Pleat Gallery, Online (Columbia, MO based), (with Michelle Weinberg)
2017 Settling In, Frye Art Museum Store, Seattle, WA
Lens Therapy, Outer Space, Myrtle Edwards Park, Seattle, WA
Sitting with Reality, Velouria, Seattle, WA
2016 Settling In, Velouria, Seattle, WA
Real Time, ArtsWest, West Seattle, WA (with Polina Tereshina)
2015 Relaxed, Kinsey Gallery, Seattle, WA
Made Personal, The Alice Gallery, Seattle, WA (with Joe Rudko + Serrah Russell)
Not a Void, Two Shelves, Seattle, WA
2013 Recollections, Edie's, Seattle, WA
2012 Release, Hunthausen, Seattle, WA
Group:
2024. Future Forward, Mini Mart City Park, Seattle, WA
Wild Cure, Slip Gallery, Seattle, WA
2023 Soft Touch, Museum of Museums, Seattle, WA
Birth/Artwork, Common Area Maintenance. Seattle, WA
Juicy Tokul, PUNCH, Ellensburg, WA
2022 40 under 40, Schack Art Center, Everett, WA
Carbon, Vestibule, Seattle, WA
Tangents, Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WA
Coffin Farm Summer Show, Redmond, WA
2021 Graphite, studioe gallery, Seattle, WA
Mineral Dive, Trio show with Drew Miller and Amie Cunat, SOIL, Seattle, WA
Altered Grain, Stay Home Gallery, Paris, TN
2020 Fragrant Lemon, Fruitsuper, Seattle, WA
2019 Forever Again, Specialist, Seattle, WA
By and By: Hope for the Future, Durden & Ray, Los Angeles, CA (curator & participating artist)
2018 Every Movement Reveals Us, Ditch Projects, Springfield, OR
Becoming American: Louder in the dark, SOIL, Seattle, WA
1 Room, studio e, Seattle, WA
Bloom In, Outback Arthouse, Los Angeles, CA
Spring/Break Art Show, New York, NY (Curator/Artist)
2017 Support System, Mount Analogue, Seattle, WA
Tech Support (curator & web designer), SOIL, Seattle, WA
Forever 22+, Specialist, Seattle, W
Seven Bodies/New Members' Show, SOIL, Seattle, WA
Portal, Coral, Seattle, WA
2016 Patron, 300 S Washington St, Seattle, WA
2015 NEPO 5K Don't Run, Seattle, WA
Out of Sight, King Street Station, Seattle, WA
The Air Around It, Wright Gallery, Northport, MI
Cairo May Art Show, Cairo, Seattle, WA
2014 Gallery 110's 5th Annual Juried Exhibition, Gallery 110, Seattle, WA
NEPO 5k Don’t Run, Seattle, WA
2013 Particles on the Wall, Ecotrust, Portland, OR
2012 Alternative Education, TARL, Seattle, WA
Residencies
2020 Fish Bowl Residency (SOIL Gallery)
2017/2018 Cascadia Residency
2017 Vermont Studio Center
2016 Vermont Studio Center
Awards
Stumptown Artist Fellowship, 2019
Cascadia Residency, Pacific Northwest, 2017/2018
Emily Mason Fellowship, Vermont Studio Center, 2016
Departmental Honors, Seattle University, 2012
Koelsch Fine Art Scholarship, Seattle University, 2011
Professional Experience
2017-Present Member, SOIL Art Gallery
2015-Present Studio Assistant, Marela Zacarias
2011-2012 Curatorial Assistant, Gage Academy of Arts
2009-2014 Gallery Guide, Frye Art Museum
Collections/Special Projects
Pioneer Elementary School - ArtsWA
Publications + Online Features
2020 Virtual Studio Visit Network live studio tour
2018 ArtMaze Mag: Summer Issue 8
Reflection on Sanctuary, Bethany Presbyterian Arts, Serrah Russell & Kyle Turver
2017 Colleen RJC Bratton: The Public Rainbow, Open House NYC, Debbi Kenote and Til Will
Studio Visit: Colleen RJC Bratton, PLEAT, Bethanie Irons
With Tech Support, Seattle Artists Try Plugging In To Tech Wealth, The Stranger, Emily Pothast
A Software Developer Visits an Art Show About Tech, City Arts, Margo Vansynghel
2016 Artist Spotlight: Colleen RJC Bratton, BOOOOOOOM, Kimi Hamada
An Interview with Colleen RJC Bratton, Velouria, Hannah Ruth Levi
2015 Between the Shelves, Two Shelves, Jessica Powers
Studio Visits, Temple of Cairo, Katherine Humphys and Emily Pothast
Chasing Storms in the Midwest, Vignettes Exported, Colleen RJC Bratton