SHORT VERSION:
Drew Brophy has been a professional artist for over 30 years. He says of his profession, “It’s my job to make things look cool.”
A life-long surfer and traveler, Drew’s career exploded in the late 1990’s when he began painting surfboards using techniques he developed with water based paint pens. That led into illustrating art for some of the top action sports companies at the time. His work expanded to include fine art paintings for collectors worldwide.
An early adopter of standup paddle surfing, Drew helped spread the sport through his adventure travels. He and whitewater expert Seth Warren were the first to standup paddle the entire 225 miles of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon.
Drew’s love of surfing has led him down a path of studying weather, its effect on waves, and how the sun influences earth. This has all led to a deep interest in physics and it has influenced his artwork. As such, his distinctive art style has evolved to include sacred geometry in an effort to decode the knowledge that ancient civilizations left for us.
Drew wants to share with the world the message that everything is energy and we are all connected. He strives to create art images that help people understand the true meaning of life; that life is meant to be enjoyed.
LONG VERSION:
Drew Brophy’s surf inspired art is best known for its bright colors and an ability to capture the energy and joy of the beach lifestyle. His distinct style has become well recognized and often imitated.
For over 30 years Brophy has worked as a professional artist, while exploring the world painting his iconic waves and suns. This immersion in nature, in some of the most beautiful places on the planet, ignited his imagination where everything is alive and full of energy.
Brophy first became well known in the 1990’s, when he created a new technique to paint his surfboards using Uni Posca Paint Pens. This technique allowed for more creativity and it changed the way surfboards were painted forever. The popularity of this new style exploded overnight. Brophy painted thousands of surfboards in surf towns all over the world. Brophy would share his techniques and always left a supply of paint pens with a local artist who could carry on the stoke.
This explosion of art led to opportunities for more detailed illustrations for emerging products such as skateboards, wakeboards, boogie boards and apparel. Brophy’s art become synonymous with the beach lifestyle, and it became his job to make things look cool.
Brophy’s career continued to grow exponentially, and his custom surfboards refined into fine art masterpieces of foam, fiberglass, and paint. They are commissioned and collected globally. Brophy’s illustration work grew in complexity and expanded into the music, science and tech industries. His work has been featured on magazines covers, in television shows and books, exposing him to an ever-broadening market.
In the past ten years Brophy’s style and medium has taken him into the fine art realm.
His lifelong love of surfing and nature required a deep understanding of meteorology and hydrodynamics. This, paired with new clients in science and tech, birthed a new style in geometry, ancient symbols, and technology. Brophy’s new work examines ideas in physics, mathematics, and energy, celebrating the Universe’s divine design.
Drew Brophy wants to share the message that everything is energy and we are all connected. He strives through his art to remind us that it is a gift to be here in this amazing life. Experience is everything; enjoy every moment. Life is Good.
“Feeling the heartbeat of the planet, the wind, the waves, the heat of the sun; all makes me feel connected to the Universe.” Drew Brophy
