Roni Breite: An artist with Breite Ideas

 By Lonnie Burstein Hewitt. Photos by Maurice Hewitt.

 

The artist outside, with her Rakish Piece.

“I make uncommon art from common objects,” Roni Breite has written.  In other words, she sees interesting possibilities in things other people step over, ignore, or toss out.  

Different sorts of odds and ends seem to call to her, something  that began in 2018 when she suddenly noticed an old motorcycle chain ring her husband had tossed in the trash and realized she could give it new life. “I transformed it, and the process transformed me!” she said.

 Rotary, the Breitened bicycle chain ring.

Maurice and I got to see many of the results at her home in San Diego, a week before she was inviting friends, neighbors, and an assortment of interested art lovers to come to a special event, with   all of her artwork on view—over 170 pieces, including some works in progress—and most of the pieces available for sale. 

Here are some of our personal favorites:

Bridged, made of a guitar bridge.

Guitart. She made five different pieces out of this guitar.

Goo Goo Face, made of hairbrush, calculator keyboard, marbles and copper rings.

The Wait.  “This is my infertility piece,” she told us. “After years of infertility, we adopted, and what you see here is multiples of my hand over my husband’s belly and arm, and the green is our backyard.”

In the kitchen: Palm Hooter, made of palm frond and CDs.

A view of her studio wall.

In the past few years, Roni’s work has blossomed; it’s been shown in a number of galleries, and featured on the announcements for two of the group shows.  And it was a delight to view her often amusing and always inventive artworks, indoors and out.

“I see something, it’s compelling, and I say I’m gonna make something with this someday,” she said. 

“And someday I do… though it may not be soon.”

Coming Soon?  Making art out of mishap.

“Five months ago, we were on a bike trip in Italy, and I broke my right elbow,” Roni told us. “Luckily, I’m a lefty, but I’m still undergoing rehab and not dextrous enough for art-making yet. So I’m saving scraps of the thermoplastic that’s used to make splints to make my next artworks when I’m ready again!” 

For more of Roni’s uncommon art visit her website. 

Lonnie Burstein Hewitt is an award-winning author/lyricist/playwright who has been writing about arts and lifestyles for over a dozen years. You can reach her at hew2@sbcglobal.net