B. D. Graft: I Don't Exist In Usual Places
May 3 - June 14, 2025
In I Don’t Exist in Usual Places, Brian de Graft invites us into a world that feels at once strangely familiar and entirely imagined. These new works – bold, vibrant, and unmistakably his – expand on the artist’s long-standing exploration of the human condition, the pursuit of happiness, and the decorative impulse.
The title, borrowed from a Belle and Sebastian lyric, hints at the heart of the exhibition: the deeply personal ways in which we inhabit locations, both real and fictional. De Graft understands that we don’t simply see places – we project ourselves onto them. Each of his painted scenes becomes a kind of mental collage: half-remembered rooms, invented exteriors, and dreamlike tableaus filtered through the lens of autobiography, art history, and pop culture.
Born in Germany in 1988 and based in Amsterdam, the artist began focusing on interior spaces during the isolating lockdowns of the pandemic. What started as a coping mechanism – an attempt to create safe, cozy spaces on canvas – soon evolved into a richer, more layered practice. Now, his work straddles the line between the intimate and the universal, inviting viewers to find themselves in settings they’ve never actually visited.
There’s a sly wit to these paintings. Perspective bends subtly, architectural elements don’t quite make sense, and small “Easter eggs” wait patiently to be discovered – details that nudge the viewer toward recognition without ever quite settling into realism. This sense of déjà vu, of being somewhere you know you’ve never been, is central to the charm of these works.
Visually, the series marks a new level of coherence; for the first time, de Graft has committed to a single stylistic approach across an entire exhibition: luminous monochrome backgrounds punctuated with white paste marker lines. The result is graphic, immediate, and subtly playful – a kind of domestic pop surrealism that feels right at home in the warmth of summer.
What truly distinguishes de Graft, however, is his rare ability to make the simple appear sophisticated and the imaginary feel familiar. Whether his imagery springs from found photographs, AI-generated compositions, or pure invention, each scene is anchored by a quiet elegance that belies its apparent ease. You may not exist in these places – but somehow, they exist in you.
