Brittany Vogel
Time Frame A Powerful Artist Paints Powerful Women By Tara Ryazansky Photos courtesy of Brittany Vogel rtist Brittany Vogel paints iconic women she admires like Kamala Harris and Harriet Tubman. Graphic portraits of her subjects pop against colorful collages depicting their accomplishments. “The series is called Powerful Women,” Vogel says. “It’s meant to celebrate extraordinary women in history. The idea is to amplify the stories, lessons, and achievements of amazing women. If I could place a spotlight on these women, then there’s an example others can follow. It’s really meant to be inspiration for the next generation or to give strength to women who are already trying to make their way.”
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She didn’t know that she would have to draw on that strength and inspiration herself to make her art. “In January of 2020 I did a mural at the Columbus Circle subway station called Suffragists Marching,” she says. “It was an interactive mural that was 12 feet wide and eight feet high. They wanted me to actually make it in front of everybody as they were walking by. I had never done anything like that before, to have commuters coming by and watching me make the work,” Vogel found it daunting to be on display. “I just thought of Susan B. Anthony and all the things that she had gone through, and I thought, ‘Well, if she can do that, I can do this.’ It did give me strength to just go ahead and do it.”
Channeling Susan Susan B. Anthony is especially meaningful to Vogel. “The first powerful woman in the series was Susan B. Anthony,” Vogel says. “She was so instrumental in women gaining voting rights in this country. She faced incredible hardship in order to try and push that vision forward.” The mural depicts suffragists marching in a New York City protest walk with picket signs. Vogel created actual signs that passersby could hold to become part of the piece and enjoy a good photo op. “I made signs that are more current-day; what women are trying to achieve now,” Vogel says.
Home Works These days, Vogel creates art in her Hoboken home. She gave up her New York City studio in the early days of the pandemic. She has lived in Hoboken since 1997, arriving after college to work for IBM. She abandoned the corporate world after having her first child. “He was two months early and had some health problems,” Vogel says. She became a stay-athome mom but still wanted to create. “I took the opportunity to become an artist,” she says. “It was about making space for myself.”
Culture Kid Despite a business and marketing background, Vogel had been interested in art since childhood.
