My name is Brian James Spies; I am an artist. I use visual language to explore the relationship between institutional power structures and the individual. It is my intention to parse meaning from what I see as the co-dependent nature of this relationship. I explore this theme in a variety of mediums ranging from drawing, printmaking and sculpture to photography, video and performance. I often utilize my own personal narrative in my work in both a micro and macro sense. Artists as diverse as Joseph Beuys, Mike Kelley, David Wojnarowicz, Adrian Piper and Andy Warhol influence my practice.