NYC to MPLS
Briana is a self-taught artist who officially began her painting practice in 2016 in Brooklyn, NY.
Her medium of choice is acrylic + mixed media on canvas. Briana also creates works on paper using elements of collage, watercolor, and gouache.
“There is this magic that happens every so often for me. I’ll see a body of work for the first time that I just can’t stop looking at. Then I’ll have the pleasure of meeting the artist only to find out they have a fascinating story as well. It just makes the work that much more interesting for me. This was my experience recently at the opening night of Gamut Gallery’s annual holiday salon, Raging Art On. Among all the wonderful work on display, a series of collages by artist Briana Auel really stuck out to me. The artist was present and we struck up great conversation about her work, her time in the New York design world, and her return to Minneapolis to pursue her artistic practice. ”
BRIANA’S FINE ART PRACTICE
Briana is a self-taught artist who first started painting in 2016 in Brooklyn, NY where she pursued fine art in tandem with her work as an art director, designer, and creative director in the fields of advertising and design.
Right-handed, Briana took a break from her career to focus on being a working artist while recovering from an injury that required her to become predominantly left-handed. She now uses both her right and left hands to paint and design, an experience that has helped inform the context and content of her work.
Briana moved her practice to the Arts District in Northeast Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2019 after almost a decade of living in NYC. In 2022, Briana became the first artist in residence at Ciceron in St.Paul through early 2024. Briana had 3 shows open in MPLS by March of 2024 then took a break from her studio practice to focus on her advertising career. Beginning in spring of 2025 Briana has the great fortune to be a guest artist working out of artist, writer activist and writer Stephanie Dillon’s studio at the West End.
Briana had her first solo show in MN in 2022-2023 curated by Gamut Gallery and was represented by the Gallery until 2025, She was also as part of the Galleri 167 collective in the Northrup King Building 2023-2024.
If you’re interested in a commission or viewing artwork, please reach out.