Brandt Gallery is delighted to present “Soft Margins”, a solo-exhibition by Cleveland-based painter Cody Heichel. This latest oeuvre captures familial, everyday moments in both social and solitary settings. Although rooted in direct observation the moments translated into oil and watercolour often become partially obscured or transformed in varying degrees throughout Heichel’s creative process.
In “Soft Margins”, Cody Heichel explores scenes derived from quiet observations, often of close friends and family members, but also of strangers, personal possessions, and natural settings. Ever the disciplined painter, Heichel’s style has ventured gently away from more realistic representation, to work that, with palpable care, posits to the viewer a symphony of shape, colour and pattern. These paintings are thus a sincere depiction of the actions and emotional subtleties derived from a moment that unfolded in front of the artist.
The work of Cody Heichel exists in the quiet space between observation and memory. In this latest collection, Heichel leans into the concept of "Soft Margins"—both as a technical approach to his medium and a philosophical stance on modern life. The "margins" Heichel explores are the peripheral moments we often overlook: By softening the edges of his subjects, Heichel invites the viewer to fill in the gaps with their own history. These works do not dictate a narrative; they offer a suggestion—a soft-focus glimpse into a life lived with quiet intention.
Known for his "act of noticing," Heichel avoids the grand or the performative, he turns the lens toward the periphery or the margins of the day; the weight of a shadow in an empty hallway, the slouch of a stranger lost in thought, a mother and child at a park, and the soft, geometric rhythm of domestic interiors. In Soft Margins, the beauty isn't found in the center of the frame, but in the sincerity of the transition.
"For me, painting is a way to anchor a fleeting moment," says Heichel. "I’m drawn to the scenes that people usually look past—the moments when no one is watching, and a person or a space is simply existing in its truest form."
Cody Heichel is a Signature Member of the Ohio Watercolor Society and a recipient of the National Watercolor Society’s Past Presidents Award. After a transformative residency in Dresden, Germany, and a successful New York debut in 2025, Heichel has solidified his place as one of the Midwest's most compelling contemporary realists. He currently lives and works in Cleveland, Ohio.
“Soft Margins” is on exhibit from Friday, April 3rd through May 8th, during gallery hours, Wednesday to Friday 11am-5pm, Saturday to Sunday from 1-5pm, and by private appointment. There will be an opportunity to meet the artists from 5-7:30pm on Friday, April 3rd. A virtual catalog will also be available. Private appointments and virtual catalogs can be requested by emailing brgalleries@gmail.com or calling 614.223.1655.