CV & Bio
Born in 1988. Lives and works in Sheffield
Email: theresanbruno(at)gmail.com
Theresa Bruno (b. 1988, she/her) is an emerging contemporary artist who identifies as female, white, bi-sexual, Buddhist, working class, and British-Polish. She lives and makes work in Sheffield, is a Yorkshire Artspace studio holder at Exchange Place, and is in Site Gallery's PLATFORM programme 2022/23, a two year residency supported by the Freelands Foundation artists programme. She
works with traditional art materials, new media and everyday objects. Her conceptual pieces and installations draw on the art world and everyday life to create sometimes humorous, melancholic, confusing or complex narratives.
Bio
Theresa Bruno (b. 1988) was born in London, and currently lives and works in Sheffield. She studied sculpture at Wimbledon College of Arts graduating in 2010. She continued to exhibit work, curate projects and review shows in London. In 2013, she co-founded and co-curated ‘SIX project space’ for 14 months whilst in residence at Roumelia Lane in Bournemouth, Dorset. She now makes work, reviews shows in Yorkshire and is in Site Gallery's PLATFORM programme 2022/23, a two year residency supported by the Freelands Foundation.
Theresa is an emerging contemporary artist who is influenced by pop and conceptualism. She pokes fun at or challenges power structures and various types of hierarchies. Her pieces often reference the art world itself, as well as changing consumer taste and trends. In her work, traditional art constructs are disrupted by mixing the use of the readymade with new media. Her work redefines the monumental, by reframing and celebrating the mundane, normal and ordinary.
She likes to make people laugh, and uses humour to mask sometimes melancholic, complex or confusing narratives. For example, she often creates self reflective objects and characters which attempt to transcend their scenarios. Some of her pieces are site-specific, playing with their contexts to enrich the language and dynamic. She is cheeky, and sometimes exercises her artistic licence to be deliberately disobedient and antagonistic.
Press & Publications
Culture 24 - Artist's Statement: Theresa Bruno discusses her 'imaginary museum' in Bournemouth
Our Fave Places - Meet the locals - Theresa Bruno
Our Fave Places - Platform 22 review - by Steven Allen
Exposed Magazine - Top Pick: Platform 22 is the multi-site exhibition showcasing five Sheffield-based artists
Now Then Magazine - Playing with space: Soundscapes and strange spaces with Platform 22
Society of Explorers Interview - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NS6X0pxVzN8
Platform 22: Theresa Bruno - Salena Barry write up for Site Gallery
Stay Productive/Break the Surface - by Beth Hughes for Betwixt Freelands Foundation Publication
Made in Bed magazine - Emerging artists - Theresa Bruno
Testimonials
“I have worked closely with Theresa Bruno over the last two years as the curator of the Freelands Artist Programme of which she was part of. Theresa was a joy to work with. She is enthusiastic, warm, and reliable. Her artistic practice is deeply personal yet evokes important and often universal themes that touches to the core of what it means to hold our identities and value in today’s society. I have learnt so much from our conversations and am proud to have been part of her journey.”
Wingshan Smith, Artist Development Curator at Freelands Foundation
“Getting lost in conversation with Theresa leads to a multidimensional discussion touching on working-class culture, spirituality and faith, the purpose of art, humanity and really any factor that helps us understand ourselves and our place in the world. To see her depth of thought reflected in her art in a way that invites you in but gives you space to follow your own instincts gives great authenticity to her work and I am excited to follow where her artistic practice will lead.”
Beth Hughes, Curator
Theresa Bruno (b. 1988) was born in London, and currently lives and works in Sheffield. She studied sculpture at Wimbledon College of Arts graduating in 2010. She continued to exhibit work, curate projects and review shows in London. In 2013, she co-founded and co-curated ‘SIX project space’ for 14 months whilst in residence at Roumelia Lane in Bournemouth, Dorset. She now makes work, reviews shows in Yorkshire and is in Site Gallery's PLATFORM programme 2022/23, a two year residency supported by the Freelands Foundation.
Theresa is an emerging contemporary artist who is influenced by pop and conceptualism. She pokes fun at or challenges power structures and various types of hierarchies. Her pieces often reference the art world itself, as well as changing consumer taste and trends. In her work, traditional art constructs are disrupted by mixing the use of the readymade with new media. Her work redefines the monumental, by reframing and celebrating the mundane, normal and ordinary.
She likes to make people laugh, and uses humour to mask sometimes melancholic, complex or confusing narratives. For example, she often creates self reflective objects and characters which attempt to transcend their scenarios. Some of her pieces are site-specific, playing with their contexts to enrich the language and dynamic. She is cheeky, and sometimes exercises her artistic licence to be deliberately disobedient and antagonistic.
Press & Publications
Culture 24 - Artist's Statement: Theresa Bruno discusses her 'imaginary museum' in Bournemouth
Our Fave Places - Meet the locals - Theresa Bruno
Our Fave Places - Platform 22 review - by Steven Allen
Exposed Magazine - Top Pick: Platform 22 is the multi-site exhibition showcasing five Sheffield-based artists
Now Then Magazine - Playing with space: Soundscapes and strange spaces with Platform 22
Society of Explorers Interview - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NS6X0pxVzN8
Platform 22: Theresa Bruno - Salena Barry write up for Site Gallery
Stay Productive/Break the Surface - by Beth Hughes for Betwixt Freelands Foundation Publication
Made in Bed magazine - Emerging artists - Theresa Bruno
Testimonials
“I have worked closely with Theresa Bruno over the last two years as the curator of the Freelands Artist Programme of which she was part of. Theresa was a joy to work with. She is enthusiastic, warm, and reliable. Her artistic practice is deeply personal yet evokes important and often universal themes that touches to the core of what it means to hold our identities and value in today’s society. I have learnt so much from our conversations and am proud to have been part of her journey.”
Wingshan Smith, Artist Development Curator at Freelands Foundation
“Getting lost in conversation with Theresa leads to a multidimensional discussion touching on working-class culture, spirituality and faith, the purpose of art, humanity and really any factor that helps us understand ourselves and our place in the world. To see her depth of thought reflected in her art in a way that invites you in but gives you space to follow your own instincts gives great authenticity to her work and I am excited to follow where her artistic practice will lead.”
Beth Hughes, Curator
CV (download here)
Education
2023 - 2024 - Freelands Foundation Artist Support Programme
2007 – 2010 BA (Hons) Fine Art, Wimbledon College of Arts, University of the Arts London
2004 – 2007 BTEC National Diploma + Foundation (Fine Art), The Arts Institute Bournemouth
Solo Exhibitions
2023 - Gargantua - Yorkshire Art Space Persistance Works
2014 - WUNDERKAMMER - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Chromopedia - SIX project space, Bournemouth
Selected Group Exhibitions (and projects)
2024 - Held, Mimosa House Gallery, London, curated by Wingshan Smith
2023 -Autumn Almanac III @ Persistence Works, Yorkshire Art Space, curated by Sean Williams
2021 - When was the last time you saw the sea?, Youkobo Art Space, Tokyo, Japan
2021 - 12o collective - 30/30 2021
2014/15 - Art at TMF Group , TMF Group, Chancery Lane, London
2014 - Home is where the ART is, SIX, Bournemouth
2013 – Colour – collaborative drawing - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Synaesthesia - LUSH Cosmetics, Kings Road, London
2012 - Reframing Bournemouth, Bournemouth Arts Festival, Bournemouth
2012 – The Artist, Hatchspace, Deptford, London
2012 – Tryouts, Down Stairs, Great Brampton House, Hereford
2012 – The Apocralypse – It looked like a theatre – Punctuation Programme, Limoncello, London
2012 – AGORA – Brick Box, Tooting Market, London
2010 – Wimbledon Degree Show, WCA, London
2010 - Ishihara, Queen of Hoxton, London
2010 – Taking a line for a Walk, WCA, Curated by Soraya Rodriguez, London
2009 – Bare Art - Vyner Street Gallery, London
2008 - Ishihara, Sixty Million Postcards, Bournemouth
Residencies
2022-2023 - PLATFORM - Site Gallery, Sheffield, funded by Freelands Foundation
Curated projects
2015 - Jason Miller - New Paintings & Sculptures, The Lighthouse, Poole
2014 - Timothy Holt - Here, There, Duracell - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Joseph Johnston & Holly Buckle - Dressed for space - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Elizabeth Wright - White Dot - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Giorgio Sadotti - Sing to Remember - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Tom Daniel-Moon & Joseph Johnston - Seers Dirge - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Richard Sanz - Dont look at me - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Richard Paul - Sea of Green - (The Enunciation of Images) - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Adam Fenton - Fifteen Paintings from the Seascape Series - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Dominic Head - Verpixelt - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Hollow Earth Collective - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - FROUTE - Bevis Fenner - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - David Evans - The Art of Walking - a field guide - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Rebecca Kunzi – 'If I had a heart' – SIX project space, Bournemouth
2012 – The Artist - Hatchspace, Deptford, London
2011 – Wallet Gallery
Commissions & Prizes & Collectives
2013 - Joined Hollow Earth Collective, London
2012 – Mockism Commission – She Couldn’t Have Attended Anyway – Neue Froth Kunsthalle, Brighton
2011 – JWT Commission – Art Prize 2nd prize, JWT Office, Knightsbridge, London
2008 – Cannizaro House WCA Summer Commission, London
Writing
2012 - 'Wimbledon Degree BA Fine art degree show Review', Jotta, London
2011 - ‘Locked room scenario review, Ryan Gander, Artangel, Artist Newsletter
2011 - 'Wimbledon college of art : 4 works' – Jotta, London
Internships & Volunteering
2020/21 – Site Gallery - Sheffield
2020 - Nicole White Murals - Sheffield
2012 – SUNDAY – Baz & Chaz, Chez Baz & Chez Chaz, London
2010 – Jerwood Drawing Prize, London
2009 - Affordable Art Fair, London
2009 – Nettie Horn, London
2008 – John Jones art handling course, London
2008 – Omni Colour, London
2008 – ZOO art fair, London
Education
2023 - 2024 - Freelands Foundation Artist Support Programme
2007 – 2010 BA (Hons) Fine Art, Wimbledon College of Arts, University of the Arts London
2004 – 2007 BTEC National Diploma + Foundation (Fine Art), The Arts Institute Bournemouth
Solo Exhibitions
2023 - Gargantua - Yorkshire Art Space Persistance Works
2014 - WUNDERKAMMER - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Chromopedia - SIX project space, Bournemouth
Selected Group Exhibitions (and projects)
2024 - Held, Mimosa House Gallery, London, curated by Wingshan Smith
2023 -Autumn Almanac III @ Persistence Works, Yorkshire Art Space, curated by Sean Williams
2021 - When was the last time you saw the sea?, Youkobo Art Space, Tokyo, Japan
2021 - 12o collective - 30/30 2021
2014/15 - Art at TMF Group , TMF Group, Chancery Lane, London
2014 - Home is where the ART is, SIX, Bournemouth
2013 – Colour – collaborative drawing - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Synaesthesia - LUSH Cosmetics, Kings Road, London
2012 - Reframing Bournemouth, Bournemouth Arts Festival, Bournemouth
2012 – The Artist, Hatchspace, Deptford, London
2012 – Tryouts, Down Stairs, Great Brampton House, Hereford
2012 – The Apocralypse – It looked like a theatre – Punctuation Programme, Limoncello, London
2012 – AGORA – Brick Box, Tooting Market, London
2010 – Wimbledon Degree Show, WCA, London
2010 - Ishihara, Queen of Hoxton, London
2010 – Taking a line for a Walk, WCA, Curated by Soraya Rodriguez, London
2009 – Bare Art - Vyner Street Gallery, London
2008 - Ishihara, Sixty Million Postcards, Bournemouth
Residencies
2022-2023 - PLATFORM - Site Gallery, Sheffield, funded by Freelands Foundation
Curated projects
2015 - Jason Miller - New Paintings & Sculptures, The Lighthouse, Poole
2014 - Timothy Holt - Here, There, Duracell - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Joseph Johnston & Holly Buckle - Dressed for space - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Elizabeth Wright - White Dot - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Giorgio Sadotti - Sing to Remember - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Tom Daniel-Moon & Joseph Johnston - Seers Dirge - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2014 - Richard Sanz - Dont look at me - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Richard Paul - Sea of Green - (The Enunciation of Images) - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Adam Fenton - Fifteen Paintings from the Seascape Series - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Dominic Head - Verpixelt - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Hollow Earth Collective - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - FROUTE - Bevis Fenner - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - David Evans - The Art of Walking - a field guide - SIX project space, Bournemouth
2013 - Rebecca Kunzi – 'If I had a heart' – SIX project space, Bournemouth
2012 – The Artist - Hatchspace, Deptford, London
2011 – Wallet Gallery
Commissions & Prizes & Collectives
2013 - Joined Hollow Earth Collective, London
2012 – Mockism Commission – She Couldn’t Have Attended Anyway – Neue Froth Kunsthalle, Brighton
2011 – JWT Commission – Art Prize 2nd prize, JWT Office, Knightsbridge, London
2008 – Cannizaro House WCA Summer Commission, London
Writing
2012 - 'Wimbledon Degree BA Fine art degree show Review', Jotta, London
2011 - ‘Locked room scenario review, Ryan Gander, Artangel, Artist Newsletter
2011 - 'Wimbledon college of art : 4 works' – Jotta, London
Internships & Volunteering
2020/21 – Site Gallery - Sheffield
2020 - Nicole White Murals - Sheffield
2012 – SUNDAY – Baz & Chaz, Chez Baz & Chez Chaz, London
2010 – Jerwood Drawing Prize, London
2009 - Affordable Art Fair, London
2009 – Nettie Horn, London
2008 – John Jones art handling course, London
2008 – Omni Colour, London
2008 – ZOO art fair, London