Roger Braimon — Visual Artist

Some moments in history! Skip past bulleted items for more scintillating editorial, though you might miss some nuggets of fun reading.

I was born the 4th child, 2 months premature and just over 2 lbs. (in Englewood, NJ) and lived in Tenafly until 5. I was told my grandmother thought I was too ugly to visit in the hospital. I told her the same thing when she was in her 80’s (no, but that would be funny.)

We moved to Closter when I was 5, and my father filed for divorce soon after moving trucks left. Closter was great for kids. It had mini golf, a bowling alley, pizza, ice cream, Burger King, Woolworths, K-mart, China Chalet, pinball and a Merle Norman Cosmetics where I spent many weeks stuck in a chair while my mom got her makeup done. Divorce meant visitation with my father on Wednesdays and Sundays. I fondly remember the waitress (Helena) at The Red Coach Diner as we went there often. No second coke allowed for me.

We were reformed Jews, 99.5% Ashkenazi, according to 23&me. My middle name, Emmett, came from the synagogue Temple Emeth in nearby Teaneck. I don’t remember ever going there. We didn’t keep kosher, but we did have all of Allan Sherman records, of which I memorized.

All siblings think the other sibling was the favorite :)

My mom and step-dad had a Gourmet Italian Deli, later just known as a deli, when we switched from selling my mom’s hand-made mozzarella that she stirred with a wooden paddle to a block of processed Land-O-Lakes cheese. It stayed white longer. I worked mostly the short-order grill section and clean=up. I was fast, and folded sandwich wrap evenly.

I came out as gay in 1991 (officially), though the handwriting was on the wall long before, along with a Miss Piggy poster and an obsession with Wonder Woman. I also had a Fischer Price collection of wooden “men” that all cohabitated in a house I made from a dresser unit, with a fully-stocked Play-Dough fridge and toilet paper bed coverings. Being a bad interior designer probably threw everyone off. To this day, I will always be grateful for Ira Greenberg, and his girlfriend at the time Robin, for being so supportive and loving.

On paper, things look pretty good for me. I received (aka paid for) a MFA from the University of Pennsylvania (painting, 1992) and BFA from Cornell University (printmaking and photography, 1989) and amassed unconscionable debt – finally paid off in 2016 (where were you, Bernie Sanders, in 1992?).

I moved from Philadelphia to NYC in 1994 and worked as a textile painter in the garment district, knocking off Ralph Lauren paisley scarves in teal, fuchsia, and celadon for fabric manufacturers. I wallowed in delusional fame from my publication in 1994’s “Forever Barbie” by M.G. Lord, which featured a painting from my ken doll series and a blurb about my coming out process through art. One exhibition followed, and another was cancelled due to the “mature content” of my work... probably the first time I was called “mature”. The book/exhibition circuit of one was the result of my famed 2nd place finish for a $50K Pew Fellowship (out of 900 applicants). "Disciplinary winner" they called it, which included a free pass to the already free Metropolitan Museum of Art, and a very generous introduction to the author by Ella King Torrey, founder of the Pew Artists program.

Undeterred by past failures, I carried my framed etchings from gallery to gallery in SoHo looking for an exhibition opportunity (uncannily following the actions of my great grandfather Morris who carried a sewing machine on his back on the lower east side looking for work in the early 1900’s). If it weren’t for coffee shops and friends teaching at universities, my exhibition record would have been anemic. Sales picked up with my work displayed along side sofas and soy candles in a boutique interiors store in NYC’s trend-setting NoLIta district. Disguised as decor, my art sales flourished...until the store-owning couple divorced and moved to Mexico.

Alongside professional rejection and perpetual self-doubt, I still enjoy following free artistic expression. Art is always a constant, whether making it or thinking about it. I find art, joy and humor in everyday life using video, photography, collage and watercolor. On a serious artsy note, I love patterns and colors, and play with ideas of imperfection and precision, random and contrived, real and imagined. Doesn’t that sound so much more intelligent than “I make art?”

I've survived financially as a preferred vendor for a cosmetics company – doing design, presentations, photography, and whatever creative ideas need to be hashed out. I once accidentally emailed nude photos to my boss and luckily remained with the company. Which reminds me, sign up at the end for my email list! I live in Westbeth (see page after this)