Hey hey!
I am Brianna Thaxton. I was born in 1991 and raised in the small city of Kearns nestled on the west side of the Salt Lake valley of Utah. I currently reside in Kearns with my husband, Paul. I have been drawing all my life and was encouraged by my family to go to art school. So, I received my Associates from Snow College, Ephraim, Utah in 2011 and my BFA from the University of Utah in 2014 with an emphasis in painting and drawing. I began wood burning in 2020 and my portfolio shifted to the symbolism of the unicorn in 2021. I was a member of the co-op gallery Local Colors of Utah in Sugar House from October, 2021 to October, 2022. I had the privilege to be an artist in residence at the Chateau d'Orquevaux, France, for the month of November, 2022 and was awarded the Denis Diderot Grant.
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I spend my days working part time in my studio and at the family business where we grow sprouts hydroponically.
Art has been immensely therapeutic for my mental and emotional health. My work completely flipped from a dark, narcissistic narrative depicting a visual journal of my perspective of domestic abuse in my sister's home to a personal narrative documenting my own emotional journey throughout my life and turning my portfolio into one that was bright and happy: unicorns, keeping my mind strong, open and honest.
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Did you grow up with horses? Me neither. I mean, maybe you did. I was getting by with the random times I got to be around horses. Those once in a while moments where it's like, "Hey! There's horses over there!"
The pic you see here was taken for my birthday in 2018. My mom took me riding. This horse did not care at all that I wanted a quick selfie.
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Before I brought unicorns back into my art, I attempted some volunteer work at a near by equine therapy ranch. I did that for about 2 months before the world shut down. Now, 5 years later, I've decided it's time to bring them back into my life. For me; for my art. I not only want to be around them more to learn about them, learn how to care for them and how they can care for me, but to simply see them, look at them and watch them move. I'm pretty sure that alone will improve my art.
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Did you know, due to the size difference of a horses heart compared to a humans, a horse generates a significantly larger electromagnetic field that greatly contributes to the calming effect they have on us. Just by standing near them, they heal us. What a world!
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Thank you horses for being natural healers.