Inspired by a drone photo she took with a friend, Bree Poort, a BYU–Hawaii alumna, said she wanted to create a painting from what she saw. Combining that idea with experimenting with resin, she said she chose to express herself in a very non-traditional way, despite pressures to stay away from art.
“You have to be completely in love with what you have to do. If you love it and stand by it, it can go far. I would also say to not rely on your art to make your money. I did small things in the beginning to earn an income so my art did not have stress, and so I could enjoy my art without needing it to supplement my income.”
Experimenting with resin
“If you were to say I was a painter, you think of someone with a paintbrush sitting with an easel, painting vertically. I paint horizontally, and I use mostly liquid. My apparatus is not a paintbrush; it is a stick or my fingers with gloves on. I use a medium called resin, which is used to make surfboard and table coatings. Then, mix in my acrylic and color tints.”
Poort said she started experiencing with creating art from resin when she was at BYUH. She had a production company with her friend, and they would take drone footage for companies, and when she saw the drone’s perspective, she said she had to express it in art.
“I had my drone photo that I really wanted to paint. I bought a bunch of oils, and I knew it was not going to move as a wanted too. I was visualizing a more fluid approach.”
Poort said she did research and found people can make oil fluid by adding acrylic and water. This research inspired Poort to experiment with resin.
BYUH alumna Mona Hannemann, was Poort's neighbor in TVA. She said she would come into Poort’s apartment and the floor would be covered in plastic with her experiments “all happening.”
“Resin art was a concept I hadn’t seen a lot. But from knowing her, it has been so intriguing and fascinating to see the process from the humble beginnings on her living room floor to where it is now. There really is so much depth to process and it’s quite unique. It’s a blend of what she loves: Art, the ocean, surfing, nature, colors, textures, creativity, and freedom.”
Instagram’s influence
After experimenting for a couple of months, Poort said Hannemann told her she needed to share her art. “I was reluctant at first [to share], but resin is one of the most expensive art mediums, so I had to start selling to pay for more resin.”
Poort began posting her pieces and artistic process on Instagram and said it led to opportunities to attend galleries, travel to different countries, and share her love of art. Now with 30,000 followers on Instagram, art has become Poort’s full-time job.
She said her Instagram gained attention because she was at the start of the trend of sharing art online. According to Poort, not everyone has the opportunity to be creative, so people come to her page to gain more ideas on creativity and ways to feel relaxed in their life.
Hannemann said she was not surprised when Poort’s art gained attention. She added, “She has this confidence about her that brings good positive energy. It propels her to her successes.”
Art over BFA
After graduating from BYUH in 2016, Poort said she wanted to earn a bachelor’s in fine arts (BFA) because it would help her resume and a future career.
She said she went to her art professors at BYUH and asked if her resin art could count towards her BFA. They told her that her art would only count if she put a figure in each of her paintings.
Poort decided not to get her BFA, and she said it was the right decision because, with or without the degree, she was able to get exponential growth from her Instagram.
Family acceptance
Poort said she had some struggles with her family accepting her choice to pursue art at BYUH.
“I was a business major my first year because I have a very entrepreneurial mind. I did not enjoy it. I changed my major to art. For a full year, I did not tell my parents because I knew my dad would be against it.”
Finally, one Christmas her family found out she changed her major to art, and Poort noted, she had to overcome stereotypes before her family would accept her decision.
“Telling my parents I was an art major was not well received because I think the stereotype for the baby boomer generation, my parents, was that only 1 percent of people could make it in art. Maybe that is true, but I think with social media and having your portfolio out for the world to see is helpful. I think anyone can make it in whatever they do.”
While at BYUH, Poort said she had to prove to her parents she could make a career out of art. “I did every project with 110 percent or even more because I would absorb the class material as I was going to go into that career.”
Poort’s husband and BYUH alumnus, Bobby Poort, said he tries to let his wife “do her thing.”
“We are both very strong-willed ... but as far as her artwork, I try to keep my opinion to myself. I let her truly express herself and the way she wants to go.”
He added he would like to see his wife collaborating with artists and brands that are meaningful to her. “Of course someone who is close with an artist wants them to be recognized and be successful. As far as being in bigger galleries, I just want it to be organic and natural.”
The big picture
Poort said she wants people to understand her art stands for something beyond what the eye sees.
“Even though there is an appreciation to having a piece of the ocean on your wall, I think to take it even further is to spread the awareness of ocean sustainability. My art can tell humans to protect our oceans and be aware of what we use and throw away because it all leads back to the ocean. Preserve that piece of nature so our children’s children can enjoy it.”
Writer: Noah Shoaf