Georgia artist, Mercer grad works to ‘create a sense of wonder’

Caleb Brown wants you to slow down and take a breath.

The Mercer graduate is an artist whose realism paintings often feature famous athletes, politicians and pop culture icons. 

You know that feeling you get when you walk into a college football stadium and see the verdant field for the first time? Or a wildflower on a walk whose color just shines in the sun? Those little moments of disruptive wonder that remind us that we’re alive, those are the moments Brown wants to create with his art.

“I was at Sweet Eleanor’s in downtown Macon recently, and I saw a sign that said, ‘A work of art is useless, but so is a flower,’” he said. “I started to think, you can go to the Grand Canyon, and it doesn’t have to explain itself. When you go to a football game, the magic of a memorable play… when I think about my life, it’s full of these moments of wonder. 

“I hope that when people see my art, it creates a moment of disruptive wonder. An opportunity to reflect that there is an opportunity for life to be good.”

It’s a noble ambition for Brown, who has rededicated himself to his art after taking a break to teach, coach track and field and work as a digital marketing manager at First Presbyterian Day School in Macon. 

A former football player at Mercer, activist and public speaker, Brown’s art has been featured in gallery shows in Macon. He’s painted commissions for athletes and been featured in news stories for almost a decade now. 

But Brown says this is the first time he feels like he’s all-in.

“Even when I was painting full time, I don’t think I was completely all in,” he said. “God has blessed me; I’m pretty multi-faceted and I could have gone in a number of different directions. Because of that, I never made a decision in any direction. For the first time, I’m doing art full time.

“It’s a faith move. I’m scared now, I’m nervous. But sometimes, you have to jump.”

Part of what has changed for Brown is his motivation. 

“The money was there in the beginning, but that’s what began this ‘dark night of the soul’ for me professionally,” he said. “Why am I painting? I want to contribute more to the world than just giving folks a product, it’s not just something for people to consume. I want to make people’s lives better.”

When he’s not painting commissions, Brown paints things that have filled him with wonder, like Alabama’s last-second victory over Auburn in the 2023 Iron Bowl.

“After that fourth-and-31 Iron Bowl play, I was compelled to go paint Jalen Milroe,” he said. “When Coach [Nick] Saban retired, I went to Hobby Lobby that day, bought a canvas and started painting.”

Brown begins his process with a pencil sketch, then a layer of acrylics that he lets dry before he goes over it with oils. The creative process is never free of self-doubt. Brown is leaning into one of his strengths: his ability to paint quickly. 

“A three-foot-by-three-foot painting, I can do in 10-20 hours,” he said. “I’m still developing my stamina. Even after all these years, I have to stop myself. If I go 10 or more hours for consecutive days, it’ll burn me out.”

As Brown works, he tries to stay in a good head space by listening to podcasts or keeping a TV on in his studio that’s playing a documentary or show he’s already seen so he doesn’t really have to pay attention to it.

“The Golden Girls is a go-to while I’m painting,” he said. “I’ve found I have to do my best to keep the mood light, to listen to upbeat music. Painting can be anxiety-provoking, you have to keep going, you have to stick it out until you realize it’s a good painting.”

Brown draws inspiration from artists like Macon’s Eric O’Dell, Daniel Moore, Robert McCurdy and Rod Penner.

“The more you learn about a thing, the more you know you don’t know,” he said. “It keeps you humble, it can also make you anxious, because you see how flawed you are. I’m a realist artist. If Robert McCurdy is the epitome of real, I don’t even know where I fit on that.

“When I struggle with different moments, I reflect on President Obama’s book ‘A Promised Land.’ He wrote that he had a lot of self doubt. Well, if Obama had self doubt, and I know he’s a great man… I don’t expect to not have fear or not doubt myself, it’s just about finding the strength to show up.”

Brown has a close circle of family and friends he relies on for support, including his father Terry Brown, mother Katrena Evans and sister Jesseka Brown.

“My dad gave me the infrastructure and resources to chase my dreams,” he said. “My sister, we’re the wonder twins. She always has my back, and we know how to support each other. If I’m going to do anything, I’m going to consult her first.

“I always wanted to make my mom proud. She loved that I was into MLK, and as I got older, I started to see the need for advocacy, to stand up for folks who cannot speak for themselves. My mom, she’s very much a servant. I want to help as many people as I can, because God has blessed me.”

Find Brown’s work on Instagram and at calebscanvas.com.