"with nothing up your sleeve but your heart"

change

2009-08-19T00:55:00.000-07:00

hello everybody-
i have another blog running that is directly connected to my website
(www.ebcbrown.com)
i am focusing much more on this blog now.
please, if you want to keep up with me go to-
http://ebcbrownevents.blogspot.com/
while this blog is a bit more focused on events/proffessionalism,
it wouldn't be me if there wasn't plenty of my heart involved.
its just a little too much for my sanity and plate spinning lifestyle to keep 2 blogs with much of the same thing said on both.
i hope you all are very well.
please, always feel free to contact me via email-
contact@ebcbrown.com

thank you.
God bless you.

erica

new work...

2009-05-18T10:17:00.000-07:00

"Potential" 12"x12" Enamel and Acrylic on Panel

"Still" 24"x24" Encaustic and Oil on Panel

"Thawing" 24"x24" Encaustic on Panel

"Old Story" 24"x24" Encaustic and Oil on Panel

I have also been working on a series of miniatures...

"Miniature No.1"

"Miniature No.4"

my website should be updated with 14 new images (including these) this week.

www.ebcbrown.com

i hope you're doing very well!

seeing me and/or my work

2009-05-04T10:56:00.000-07:00

if you ever want to do a studio visit, i would be so glad to have you!my studio is located in downtown west chester, pa.
contact me and we'll set something up.
contact@ebcbrown.com215-593-8681

there are several other places in the area that you can go to see my work...

first and foremost-

Barnstone Gallery
i currently have 5 pieces at the gallery.
this is a beautiful space run by amazing individuals and they represent many great artists.
location:
388 W Pothouse Rd
Phoenixville, PA 19460
site: http://www.barnstonegallery.com/
phone: (610) 917-0140

i also display my work at several alternative spaces (meaning, not the typical gallery scenario)...

Pietro's Prime
125 W. Market St
West Chester, PA 19380
currently have 6 pieces
buisness hours: monday-tuesday, 11am-12am
wednesday-saturday, 11am-2am
sunday 4pm-11pm

PGM Reality
39 West Gay St.
West Chester, PA 19380
currently have 6 pieces
buiness hours: they are usually there from 10am-5pm monday-saturday
but they may be out on appointment. feel free to call:610-344-0600

Olive Branch (new restaurant)
142 W Gay St
West Chester, PA 19380
currently have 10 pieces

Artisan Gallery and Cafe
236 Bridge Street
Phoenixville, Pa, 19460
610-935-1965
currently have 3 pieces

Pure Spa
79 E Butler Ave
Ambler, PA 19002
(215) 542-7873
currently have 4 pieces

2009-05-04T10:54:00.000-07:00

thank you SO much to everyone who came out to the Chester County Studio Tour.
what a great event! thanks to you, it was very successful.

i have a lot going on through may and june...
i just exspanded my studio space.
if you have ever been to my studio, i still have the front room to paint in, but i have now acquired the connecting office to use as my own office/display area/storage.
very exciting...
and you can see it either by contacting me and setting up a meeting or you can come out to the west chester based studio tour . it will be held on Saturday, June 27th. it will include several other downtown west chester based studios. i will post more in a few weeks.

also, there are several more Art4Barter events comming up that i will keep you posted on.

lastly, and the next event...
i will be participating in the second annual Village of Eagle Spring Festival.
the Village of Eagle Spring Festival will be held Saturday, May 16, from 10-6. Set on over 3 acres of meadow right off of Pottstown Pike in the Village of Eagle, the Festival will feature fine arts and antiques vendors, music, local wineries, and children’s activities, as well as the best of area restaurants!i will have several of my paintings hanging in the barn, and i'll be there to meet and greet everybody. please come out!

let me know if you have any questions.thank you so much for your support!

Chester County Studio Tour - this weekend!!!

2009-04-20T10:21:00.000-07:00

This weekend is the Chester County Studio Tour.

i will be set up at the first location (80 Highspire Rd. in Downingtown, PA)
under a tent with at least 25 of my paintings, including 6 new pieces.

please come eat, drink, see artwork from various painters and be merry!

i hope to see you there!
please let me know if you have any questions at all.

(i have directions below)

with my gratitude,

erica brown

contact@ebcbrown.com

http://www.ebcbrown.com/

http://www.chestercountstudiotour.com/

Directions to 80 Highspire Rd.

(there will be sign along the way for the "chester county studio tour")

From West Chester, PA

leave west chester via rt 322 west
when you reach rt.30 (lancaster ave.) in downingtown, turn left
make a right at the next light to continue on rt.322
you will pass downingtown high school on your right and go under an overpass (the 30 bypass)
continue as the road curves to the left.
at the next light, Corner Ketch Rd, make a right.
continue on Corner Ketch Rd. (a beautiful county road) until you reach a "T" at the foot of a steep hill
make a slight left onto Creek Rd
take a left at the next road onto Highspire Rd. (you'll see a green house on the left before the road)
go up the hill and look for 80 Highspire Rd on your left

Directions from 202 South (Wayne, King of Prussia, philadelphis, etc)

get on 202 south
get off onto the 30 by-pass (exton/frazer/downingtown- headed towards downingtown/coatesville)
keep right
get off the "manor ave" exit rt 322
turn right off of exit
continue on road as it curves to the left
at the next light, Corner Ketch Rd, make a right.
continue on Corner Ketch Rd. (a beautiful county road) until you reach a "T" at the foot of a steep hill
make a slight left onto Creek Rd
take a left at the next road onto Highspire Rd. (you'll see a green house on the left before the road)
go up the hill and look for 80 Highspire Rd on your left

From Honeybrook/Lancaster

take rt.322 east towards downingtown
at the light with Corner Ketch Rd., make a left (this is before the road curves and takes you into downtown downingtown)
continue on Corner Ketch Rd. (a beautiful county road) until you reach a "T" at the foot of a steep hill
make a slight left onto Creek Rd
take a left at the next road onto Highspire Rd. (you'll see a green house on the left before the road)
go up the hill and look for 80 Highspire Rd on your left

bbc on art4barter

2009-03-30T00:41:00.000-07:00

"Remember" encaustic, plaster and dye on panel

12x12

EBCBrown,LLC '08

hello everybody,

i am attaching a link where you can see a BBC television piece done on the art 4 barter exhibition i have been a part of. i am not personally in any of the clips, but my painting, "Remember" is. see if you can catch it. i'm attaching an image of the painting to help.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/world_news_america/7969341.stm

(be forwarned that i don't know how long this link will be made available)

if nothing else, i love the BBC, so its very exciting.

hoping you are well.

erica

Chester County Open Studio Tour

2009-03-23T10:32:00.000-07:00

i will be a part of the chester county studio tour.

the event starts at the artist, Jeff Schaller's studio.

i and several other artists wil be displaying my work on the premsis.

the tour continues at the studio of David Oleski.

this is a great opportunity to see some of chester countie's artists in a beautiful setting.

for more information go to:

www.chestercountystudiotour.com

the details:

Saturday April 25th 10am - 6pm

Sunday April 26th 12pm - 5pm

the event starts at:

80 Highspire Rd.

Downingtown, PA 19335

the event ends at:

977 Broad Run Rd.

West Chester, PA 19380

let me know if you have any questions.

also....

i will be a part of a downtown based open studio tour this summer

this will take place at my studio.

i will keep you posted on that as it approaches.

2009-03-15T00:40:00.000-07:00

Art 4 Barter...

Danielle ANDREWS
Alison ARMSTRONG
Erica BROWN
Rosie BERGERON
Neil CHOWDHURY
Bivas CHOUDHURY
Ellissa COLLIER
Mareena DAREDIA
Vinod DAVE
Anjali DESHMUKH
Tanya DODD
Alexis DUQUE
Quentin MORRIS
Veru NARULA
Avani PATEL
Lisa PRESSMAN
Rachel ROBBINS
Joan ROBERTS
Paul SANTOLERI
Rupa SHAH

ART4Barter
Curated by Antonio Puri

March 14 – March 21, 2009

Opening Reception: March 14th, 2009
6pm to 9pm

NYC Studio
55 Bethune Street, C - 909
New York, NY 10014
212 645 0767
By Appointment
For additional info go to http://www.antoniopuri.com/

Also...

for the rest of the month i will have over 20 pieces on display at Burlap & Bean coffee shop in newtown square, PA

lastly...

i will have some of my artwork displayed at the new home of PGM reailty on gay street in west chester.
the grand opening reception for this new space is on thursday evening.
please let me know if you are interested in attending.

please let me know if you have any questions.

contact@ebcbrown.com.

hoping you are very well

my response...

2009-03-09T09:35:00.000-07:00

this is my monologue in response to criticism regaurding the Art 4 Barter exhibition i'm involved with.

while i am responding to negative comments here, i am so thankful for the many people who have responded positively to the show! i am grateful for the press, even if it can be cynical at times.

i just thought i'd like to clarify my thoughts on the show...

my response...i suppose i can understand why professor rushton might see this show as a "publicity stunt"... but that is not what its about for me. and it doesn't seem to be about that for any of the other artists.
its a statement on our countries economy. something that depressingly dominates so much of the news we see on tv and hear on the radio. its also a connecting idea- relating the functional, somtimes personal needs of the artist to the collectors. the act of artists bartering their work for goods and services is an age old idea. it has become all the more relevant these days.

is this in response to being desperate as artists?
no. during an economic crunch non-necessity items, such as fine art, are the first to go. but as artists, we are used to making due. even famous artists have their work displayed at museams in double sided glass cases because they painted another painting on the back of an existing painting. and of course there's the ability to pick up odd jobs to help make the bills. i myself have 3! the artist's life is not nearly so glamerous as some would like to think. there have been times when i have literally had to chose between food and art supplies- do i eat today, or do i go get that tube of paint i need to finish this painting. i chose not to eat.
so niether is this show an act of desperation on the artist's part.
i actually have been very very blessed recently to have several commissons come in and i know from talking to the other artists... we're not desperate. we're a tough bread if we're really dedicated to our art. its anything but easy.
also, this has been a wonderful opportunity for me to be in a show with very talented artists that i might not have met otherwise.
for me, the bartering may not be as affective as for others. i am mainly asking for art supplies. i do not own a home, so i have no need for anything involving that. i am a bit frettful with anything having to do with car maintenence or my health care, so i don't want to put up services regaurding that. so what do i ask for? art supplies.
the beautiful thing about this is that if somebody does present me with the art supplies, they are putting it right back into the process. they get to see what i do with what they've provided and they get a painting for it.
its all an exiciting thing to me, even if its misunderstood.
next week we will have our next exhibition in the west village in manhattan at one of the artist's studio spaces.
let's hope it keeps going on.
cheers to the wonderful mr. antonio puri who is curating this exhibition (and thank you for including me).

new work

2009-03-09T09:28:00.000-07:00

"Winter's Day"

encausitc and oil on panel

34"x40"

my website was just updated this weekend.

check out images of 12 new paintings and 2 works on paper.

www.ebcbrown.com

i will be adding more soon- i have 6 new pieces at burlap and bean (where i have my work displayed for the month) that i haven't gotten photos of yet.

hope you're doing very well.

Art 4 Barter write up...

2009-03-09T08:20:00.000-07:00

this is an article written in the philadelphia inquirer yesterday. thought i'd share...

A barter economy for art in Phila.
By Amy S. Rosenberg
Inquirer Staff Writer

Philadelphia artist Ed Hughes could use an electrician.
So if you happen to be an electrician, and you think you might want some art in your home, Hughes has a deal for you: your electrical work in exchange for his mixed-media metal-on-wood panels with enamel-based paint, now on display at the SoHa Gallery & Salon in Haddon Heights.
Hughes is one of 16 artists - most of whom regularly show their work in galleries - in a new Art4Barter exhibit that debuted in Fishtown in January, moved to its current Jersey home last month, has a date in Manhattan's West Village beginning Saturday, and then will go wherever anyone offers a venue in exchange for a painting by organizer Antonio Puri of West Chester.
"As far as bartering, I thought that was quite a unique idea," said Hughes. "Other trades put a value on [their] work. We can pass that on."
All the art in the exhibit is available for barter of some sort, with the artist's desires usually noted on a card posted on the wall under information about the painting.
Ellissa Collier, for example, is open to a variety of offers in exchange for an untitled spiderwebby-kaleidescopish work that involves paint on paper with strips of tape:
"Tax preparation from H&R Block, art supplies, yards of bubble wrap, fabric, and 30 rolls of 400-speed film."
Erica Brown is looking for 200 pounds of the cosmetic-grade beeswax she uses in her work - which, at $3 a pound, translates to a rather specific cash equivalent for this barter.
Brown said the show was a good way to bring artists together with other artists and with the broader community.
"There's such a separation between people who create art and people who come to see the shows," she said. "It makes it more real. You see the supplies [artists need]. I'm possibly open to other proposals, something I haven't thought of."
Puri, an artist originally from Chandigarh in the Indian Himalayas, where bartering is common (though he said that link occurred to him only after the fact), feels that the economic climate has made bartering a natural for the art world, where artists frequently trade works among themselves.
Bartering apparently has caught on in other areas as well; the barter site on Craigslist Philadelphia features such offers as "moving labor for laptop" and an electrician looking to barter his services for "Tickets for sporting events (eagles, phillies), T-shirt printing, Fishing boat, Work truck/van, Car or motorcycle 1200 or bigger or tools" - but not art.
"I've been bartering for a long time," said Puri, who has exchanged paintings for studio space. "Based on the economic situation, I decided this would be a perfect time to organize something. While artists may be needing goods and services right now, people can't afford to get art. You find art missing in people's lives. This is maybe a chance to give people art as well."
At the opening wine-and-cheese reception Feb. 25, there were 16 offers for works, all subject to final negotiations with the artists.
One of them was Tanya Murphy Dodd, whose photograph Just Around the Bend caught the eye of Haddon Township Commissioner Paul Dougherty. Murphy Dodd was seeking electrical, plumbing, or dental work - or tutoring in Japanese - but accepted Dougherty's offer of legal services.
The reception was underwritten by Christine Hopkins, owner of the SoHa Gallery & Salon, in exchange for a painting of Puri's she had seen at the show in Fishtown. Hopkins' hairdressing services were in demand at the reception, and she was negotiating for several pieces of art.
She said she had been eager to host the exhibit as a way of drawing attention to her new salon/gallery, which she hoped would anchor a new arts and theater district in the south Haddon Township (SoHa) area, which already is home to the historic Ritz Theatre in Oaklyn.
"I would have offered to host anyway," she said - even if Puri's swirly abstract watercolor were not hanging in her salon. "All of the artists that showed were very excited about the idea. It's more of a conversation starter.
"A lot of people don't have any art in their lives," she said, echoing Puri.
Artist Celestine Hughes - wife of the electrician-seeking artist Ed - is looking for art supplies and has a target value, $800, in mind for her glass sculpture House of Harmony. (This month in a juried show at Chestnut Hill's Woodmere Art Museum, her five-foot glass sculpture Of Birds, Of Feathers, I Do Declare! will be for sale for $10,000.)
"I think in these economic hard times, artists are the ones that really suffer a great deal," she said. "Art is the last thing a person is going to include in their budget. It's great for artists to think outside of the box."
Not everybody is impressed with the concept. Michael Rushton, an Indiana University professor who studies the economics of art, called the barter idea "extremely inefficient" - more of a publicity stunt than a true alternative way to get something of value for an artist's work.
"I see it as not an awfully important thing," he said. "The barter in modern times is a bit of a gimmick, really. It's a fairly ineffective way to go about your business. The electrician always had the option of going to an art fair and a gallery and looking for things. . . . All you've done is made things more difficult for obtaining the services."
But Puri is having none of that. Open to any offers to host an Art4Barter exhibit in exchange for a work of art, he envisions the show as a kind of traveling community-building concept, where local artists will be featured as well. He hopes it will be ongoing, ultimately supplemented by an Art4Barter Web site.
"I think it's a respectable way of trading," he said. "It's not a way to replace the normal capitalist way of thinking. It's an alternative and addition that breaks down these class barriers, and breaks down cultural barriers."

If You Go
The Art4Barter show continues through 9 p.m. Wednesday at SoHa Gallery & Salon, 1001 White Horse Pike, Haddon Heights (856-854-0200). It will be at 55 Bethune St. in New York from Saturday through March 21.
Contact staff writer Amy S. Rosenberg at 215-854-2681 or arosenberg@phillynews.com

other press about the exhibition:
http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20090227/NEWS01/902270371&referrer=FRONTPAGECAROUSEL
http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/consumer/save_with_6abc&id=6678102 (video)
http://www.dailycandy.com/philadelphia/article/41844/The+TradeOff

upcomming events

2009-02-16T07:35:00.000-08:00

i will have a few paintings on display for the second show with

the art4barter exhibition curated by antonion puri.

come on out and see it!

also...

for the month of march i will also have a selection of paintings

(including 10 new pieces that have not yet been shown) at the lovely cafe,

Burlap & Bean, in Newtown Square, PA

Shops at Springton Pointe

204 South Newtown Street Rd

Newtown Square, PA 19073

484-427-4547

open:
monday-tuesday 6am-8pm

wednesday 6am-9pm

thursday 6am-10pm

friday-saturday 7am-11pm

come out, have a cup of their yummy coffee and see my new work,

or go to one of their shows with local muscians.

http://www.burlapandbean.com

2009-01-26T07:52:00.000-08:00

i will have 2 paintings on display in a show called "Art 4 Barter"
see the below press release for more details....

For Immediate Release

January 30 – February 6, 2009

Opening Reception: Friday, January 30th, 6 - 9pm
Artists’ Talk: 5 pm

Closing Reception: First Friday, February 6th, 6 – 9pm

Art4Barter: Co-Curated by Antonio Puri and Henry Bermudez

Antonio Puri and Henry Bermudez are inviting you to the first exhibition of the Art4Barter project. What is Art4Barter?

It hit us that bartering may be the answer to bail us out of our current crisis. Although artists have historically been bartering as much as possible we feel it is more relevant now than ever before. It can provide a solution to survival for so many of us and create a new vision for society.

We propose, as a start, an exhibition of eleven exceptional artists: Alexis Duque, Brujo de la Mancha, Ellissa Collier, Erica Brown, Keiko Miyamori, Kim Alsbrooks, Quentin Morris, Rebecca Jacoby, Theodore Harris, Tory Franklin, and Vinod Dave. These artists are from diverse backgrounds, and will present their works for barter. No works shall be sold for money but rather for services and goods. The exact service or good that the artist requires will be on the label next to their art. For example, if an artist were to ask for dental work or other medical procedures in exchange for their art, or for a studio to work in, etc., it will give the community an opportunity to barter for those items that are missing from the artists’ lives. The irony is that art is missing from the lives of many people too because it is treated as a luxury item and not as an essential part of our lives. This system will not only inspire people to trade with artists, musicians, writers, dancers, and other creative minds, it will also make society less judgmental about valuing different services. When this becomes the norm, bartering will be a respectable activity and will create relationships between people from different trades.

Society will be able to provide opportunities to artists that were inconceivable before this. In addition to being one of the greatest human events in the beginning of the new millennium, we are also expressing a change that the rest of humanity can participate in. By creating a vision of a new cultural standard, whereby people can get through hard financial times by participating in a win-win situation. This idea can spread to people from all societies of the world, but we envision it will begin in our community of Philadelphia. The development of this project relies on the support from venues that can connect artists with members in the community that are able to fill the needs of the artists. The first exhibition will take place at Henry Bermudez Studio because no other venue was immediately available. However, we are offering to barter our collaborative artwork with institutions that will host our next exhibition.

This is Art4Barter!

We are seeking professional artists that have a need for goods and services to contact us for future exhibitions. The curators will also be offering artwork as barter to those that can provide venues for future shows.

Art4Barter at Henry Bermudez Studio, 628 B Hancock Street, Philadelphia, PA 19123,
215 923 2069, www.art4barter.com
Hours: Tuesday through Sunday from 6 to 9pm and by appointment

White Stone Gallery

2009-01-08T20:23:00.000-08:00

My painting "Prone to Wander" was selected to be in a show at the White Stone Gallery.

this is their 2009 juried biblical art exhibition

the show starts Wednesday January 16th and runs through Febuary 15th.

the gallery is open wed-sat 11-7 and sundays 12-5.

there is no artists reception this time, so stop on by during their normal buiness hours.

4219 Main St. (manayunk)

Philadelphia, PA

215.482.7700

info@whitestonegallery.com

http://www.limestreetgallery.com

2009-01-02T19:06:00.000-08:00

oooh- i stumbled upon this quote today. being one of many many many "starving artists" i have to appreciate this take on the current economy's affect on art sales...

Some Words From Richard Rosenfeld...

"While people are scrambling to find a safe place for their money, this is an excellent time to buy art. I don't mean the hot, trendy art so heavily promoted by the glossy art magazines and the elite New York galleries. These faddish works marketed at hundreds of thousands of dollars are the first to be discredited during a serious economic downturn. The art I recommend buying is good, solid art done by talented, committed artists that will have lasting value regardless of monetary market trends. If thinking about your money is giving you trouble sleeping, an extra lump in the mattress won't help. Put something meaningful and lasting on your wall and every time you see it you will be reminded that some values transcend the economy. Now there's an idea to sleep on!"
- Richard Rosenfeld, Rosenfeld Gallery, Philadelphia, PA November 2008

Auld Lang Syne

2008-12-30T14:58:00.000-08:00

Grand Small Works

2008-12-04T17:43:00.000-08:00

Artists Reception- Friday, December 5th 6-9

i have 3 small paintings in this exhibition.

i am excited for the opening reception tomorrow.

i you're able, please come out!

Reaching

2008-11-25T17:06:00.000-08:00

"Reaching"
Enamel, Acrylic, colored pencil and shellac on panel
48"x24"

into glory

2008-11-25T16:18:00.000-08:00

"Into Glory"

12"x12"

Encaustic, Oil, Gold Leaf and Paper on Panel

encouragement from those before me

2008-11-10T11:14:00.000-08:00

If you hear a voice within you say "you cannot paint," then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced." ~vincent van gogh"

Only when he no longer knows what he is doing does the painter do good things." ~ Edgar Degas

"Work cures everything." ~ Matisse.

"Lord, grant that I may always desire more than I can accomplish." ~Michelangelo

"The position of the artist is humble. He is essentially a channel." ~ Piet Mondrian

"Blessed are they who see beautiful things in humble places where other people see nothing." ~ Camille Pissarro

"One must from time to time attempt things that are beyond one's capacity."~ Auguste Renoir

"The dignity of the artist lies in his duty of keeping awake the sense of wonder in the world. In this long vigil he often has to vary his methods of stimulation; but in this long vigil he is also himself striving against a continual tendency to sleep. "~Marc Chagall

"No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist." ~Oscar Wilde

"There's no retirement for an artist, it's your way of living so there's no end to it." ~henry moore

"In spite of everything I shall rise again: I will take up my pencil, which I have forsaken in my great discouragement, and I will go on with my drawing." ~vincent van gogh

"Courage... is when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what." ~harper lee

"Perseverance is a great element of success. If you only knock long enough and loud enough at the gate, you are sure to wake up somebody." ~Longfellow

-explaining why he still painted when his hands were twisted with arthritis"The pain passes, but the beauty remains." ~renoir

"The more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.Resistance is experienced as fear; the degree of fear equates to the strength of Resistance. Therefore, the more fear we feel about a specific enterprise, the more certain we can be that that enterprise is important to us and to the growth of our soul. That's why we feel so much Resistance. If it meant nothing to us, there'd be no Resistance. [...]The professional tackles the project that will make him stretch. He takes on the assignment that will bear him into uncharted waters, compel him to explore unconscious parts of himself.Is he scared? Hell, yes. He's petrified. [...]So if you're paralyzed with fear, it's a good sign. It shows you what you have to do."~ Steven pressfield ("the war of art")

Friday, October 24th

2008-10-16T13:31:00.000-07:00

"Beloved" 36"x36" encaustic and oil on panel

Show runs through November 24th, 2008

this sunday!

2008-09-17T10:23:00.000-07:00

i am having an event this sunday.
it is a group show that i have organized and my work will be featured in.
if you attended my open studio event, than you saw 6 pieces that were "in process".
these paintings are now finished and will be on display at this event.

Details:
Upstairs at Fennario
group show during the annual west chester restaurant festival.
Sunday, September 21st
12pm-5:30pm
111 North Church St.
(between chestnut and gay streets)
west chester, pa

Fennario is the coffee shop that i work at. the upstairs is used for as a live music venue as well as an exhibition space (as is the case for this event).
the restaurant festival is a great, well attended event featuring stands by the many many restaurants in town as well as vendors selling a wide array of jewelery, etc. it tends to be a very fun event, but crowded- just so you are prepared. below is a link with more information about it.
http://www.west-chester.com/recreation.php

i hope to see you there!
please let me know if you have any questions.

september events

2008-08-28T19:06:00.000-07:00

Selected Works at Balance
Artist's Reception: Friday, September 5th 6-7pm
Balance is a beautiful health center that focuses on holistic healing.
i will have 7 pieces there for the month of September.
112 South 20th Street
(between samson and chestnut streets)
Philadelphia, PA 19103
http://www.balancehealthcenter.com/

Group Show at Fennario
The West Chester Restaurant Festival
i am organizing a group show in the upstairs gallery space at Fennario during
the restaurant festival.
It will be featuring several west chester based artists, including myself.
Sunday, September 21st 12-5:30pm
111 North Church St.
West Chester, PA 19380

for all of those who come out to my open studio...

2008-08-26T16:44:00.000-07:00

"I awoke this morning with devout thanksgiving for my friends, the old and the new."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

this is how i felt this morning when i woke up.
yesterday was such a wonderful day, and it would not have been so if all of you hadn't come to share it with.
i hope it doesn't sound too strange to those of you who might not know me well, but support means so much to me.
while i am pursuing my art carear as a business, it is a business dealing with my heart and soul- my passion and my calling. when people come out to support this endeavor it truly means a great deal to me.

thank you so much for taking the time to come out yesterday.
you made it a wonderful day!

in gratitude,
erica brown

OPEN STUDIO EVENT

2008-08-05T14:58:00.000-07:00

(Photograph of studio floor)

Open Studio
Erica Brown
August 24th, 2008
1pm-7pm

Please come join me at my humble
studio space. Take a look at what
I’m working on and where I create my artwork.

conact me with any questions:

Contact@ebcbrown.com

weep worthy

2008-07-17T18:19:00.000-07:00

By Matthew ChanceCNN

DONETSK, Ukraine (CNN) -- A frail Irene Famulak clutched her brother on the airport tarmac, her arm wrapped around him in a tight embrace, tears streaming down their faces. It was the first time since 1942 they had seen each other, when she was 17 and he was just 7.

Siblings Wssewolod Galezkij and Irene Famulak were separated in 1942 when Nazis took her to a labor camp.

That was the night the invading Nazis came to take her away from her Ukrainian home.
"I remember it well because I kissed him good-bye, and he pushed me away," she said of her brother. "I asked, 'Why did you do that?' And he said that he doesn't like kisses."
"The Nazis told my mother that I was being taken to work in a German labor camp for six months. But it was, of course, much longer. I was there for years."
Both siblings survived the Holocaust and grew up on different sides of the Iron Curtain, not knowing the fate of the other.
But after 66 years apart, Famulak, 83, was reunited with her long lost 73-year-old brother, Wssewolod Galezkij. They held each other close this time, cherishing the moment. "I don't believe anyone has ever known such happiness. Now, I truly believe I can die satisfied," Galezkij said.
Famulak made the long journey to Donetsk in eastern Ukraine from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after being contacted by the American Red Cross. The organization told her they had located her only surviving sibling.
Famulak said she spent World War II in a labor camp in Munich, Germany, working in the kitchens. She had been taken to the camp with her older sister. When it was liberated in 1945, Famulak stayed in Germany for several years, eventually emigrating to the United States in 1956.
She never saw her parents again after that day in 1942 when Nazis separated her from her family. She and her brother still have no idea what happened to their mother and father. Some of their siblings lived through the war, but later died; others, they never heard from again after being separated.
But her younger brother never gave up hope of tracking his sister down. He, too, was sent to a German labor camp, but after the war, he moved back to Ukraine, then a republic of the Soviet Union.

Under Soviet leader Josef Stalin, information on lost relatives was kept sealed, and Galezkij said it wasn't until reforms in the late 1980s, followed by the Soviet collapse, that he started making progress in finding his sister.
Even then, it took him more than 17 years to locate her in the United States. He broke down in tears as he spoke of his overwhelming happiness at finding her.
"When the Red Cross told me they had found her in America, it was such a joy," he said, sobbing.
In fact, he had to be taken to the hospital because he was so overcome when he first learned she was alive. At this week's reunion, there was a doctor on hand at the airport as a precaution.
Back in the United States, there were tears, too.
Linda Klein, the director of the American Red Cross Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center, said the volunteer who helped the siblings find each other got caught up in the emotion herself.
"When I showed her the picture, she stood there and wept," Klein said. "She was beside herself."
Klein's group has reunited 1,500 families since it began work in 1990. She said the former Soviet Union released records in 1989 of concentration camps it liberated, greatly helping organizers find information on Holocaust victims.
The organization has 100 volunteers -- a third of them Holocaust survivors, Klein said. The group also helps families find information about their loved ones who died during the Holocaust. They have brought together more than 50 families this year. All of their work is free. She says it's often like "looking for a needle in a haystack."
"We're playing beat the clock right now," she said, adding, "It's about families that one day they were together and then they were apart."
"When a connection is made, there are just smiles all around."
That was the case for this family in Ukraine. Years of trauma, of separation, of not knowing what happened to loved ones, have been replaced by celebration.
In a picturesque orchard overlooking rolling fields, Galezkij, his wife and their neighbors laid out a feast for his American sister. As the vodka flowed, he told her how he had survived for a lifetime without her.
"He says he always thought he'd see me someday. He dreamt lots about me," Famulak said, as she sat next to her brother.
"And he wrote a song for me. When he went to sleep, he sang every night and cried."
With that, Galezkij, weakened by illness and age, burst into song. But this time, he sang the words with pure joy.

odd one

2008-06-02T10:40:00.001-07:00

so john and i were seated down for a yummy meal at monks cafe and directly to my left was this. the wall falling apart. i immediately had to take a picture of it. so funny how things in disrepair inspire me so. i'll point out a wall of pealing paint, plaster falling off to exspose bricks and somebody will say "that reminds me of your paintings!" hah! i wonder why.

luckily john understands me quite well and no words needed to be said for why i couldn't stop looking at the wall during our meal.

still amazes me...

2008-06-02T10:09:00.000-07:00

i remember studying this in school- and for some reason it keeps comming back to mind and still amazes me. The Underground Terracotta Army of Emperor Qin Shi Huang...

"One of the greatest archaeological discoveries of this century occurred in March 1974, near the city of Xi'an in the north-central province of Shaanxi. Farmers digging for water unearthed a fragment of a warrior figure, part of the terracotta army of Qin Shi Huangdi, who ruled between 246 and 210 B.C. Construction of his elaborate tomb probably began as soon as he assumed the throne. More than a tomb, it is an entire necropolis, a city of the dead. The later Han historian Sima Qian (c. 145-86 B.C.) described Qin Shi Huangdi's tomb as a microcosm replicating the heavens and the earth."
http://www.nga.gov/education/chinatp_emp.shtm

"The warriors were forgotten by history, and only rediscovered in 1974.
Yang Peiyan and some other farmers were working in the fields.
"Back at that time we villagers were digging a well because of the drought, after three metres down we hit something, the fragments turned out to be a terracotta warrior," he said.
Realising the fragments were important - and valuable - he contacted local officials. "

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/6935754.stm

more info- http://www.nga.gov/education/chinatp_emp.shtm

Dark Visions of Goya

2008-06-02T08:16:00.000-07:00

it was actually a song lyric that lead me to want to research Goya's "Black Paintings" (from a david grey song- "Destroyer")
i found all of this so entriguing- disenchanted, this extremely talented artist locks himself in and paints scarrliy dark paintings on the walls of his house as he nears his death.
here's what wikipedia has to say about it....

"In 1819 at the age of 72, Goya moved into a two-story house outside of Madrid called "Quinta del Sordo," or "Deaf Man's Villa". Although the house had been named after the previous owner who was deaf, Goya was himself deaf at the time as a result of an illness he suffered at the age of 46.
After the Napoleonic Wars and the turmoil of the Spanish government, Goya developed an embittered attitude towards humanity. He had an acute awareness of panic, terror, fear, and hysteria. Also surviving two near-fatal illnesses, Goya grew increasingly anxious and impatient in fear of relapse. These factors combined are thought to have led to his production of 14 works known as the Black Paintings.
Using oil paints and working directly onto the walls of his dining and sitting rooms, Goya created intense, haunting works with dark themes. The paintings were not commissioned, and they were not meant to leave his home. He did not title the paintings, but art historians have since provided titles."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Painting

the top painting is titled "The Colossus"

and the bottom one "Saturn Devouring One of His Children"

another site says,

"Old age and infirmity have been suggested as a linking theme for this series. But the overall meaning has never been satisfactorily explained. All the pictures were painted directly onto the wall and they are all, to a greater or lesser degree, damaged. In 1878 they were transferred to canvas supports. Goya painted these works very rapidly, using broad strokes applied with large brush, palette knife and possibly sponges. He may have regarded them primarily as a technical experiment. Attempts to tease out connections with the earlier Caprichos or Disastros have proved difficult. They are perhaps best considered as hermetic self-contained fantasies, despite several elements being based upon, or strongly evocative of, earlier images. Suggestions that they contain an essentially nihilistic message are not convincing."

http://www.eeweems.com/goya/black_paintings.html

and here is a new york times article about the "Black Paintings"

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0DEED61F3CF934A15754C0A9659C8B63

the stump

2008-05-25T12:25:00.000-07:00

my boss at fennario, brendon, walked in last week and asked me,
"do you want a stump?"
"i found a really nice stump today- it looks like a butterfly. do you want it?"
i had never been asked if i wanted a stump before!
so random!
i had to say yes!!!
so he and john loaded this very heavy (probably 75lbs or more) tree stump into my car
and the next day john and i struggled to get it into the studio.
somehow, though it be quite random and my studio is very small, it fits perfectly...
almost as if it should have been there all along!

the stump in the studio

me happy on the stump

john and i on the stump

sometimes you have to savor the crazy, fun, random things in life to try and balance out hard times. my stump makes me happy.

i know- i'm a crazy artist. but we already know that, don't we....

2008-05-19T09:47:00.001-07:00

"Art is a kind of innate drive that seizes a human being and makes him its instrument. To perform this difficult office it is sometimes necessary for him to sacrifice happiness and everything that makes life worth living for the ordinary human being."~carl jung

man, am i feeling this right now...

paper

2008-05-05T08:44:00.000-07:00

i am pretty enamored with those who work with paper and maintain its fragile, beautiful form- not just paintings on top of it.

here are some striking images i thought i'd share...

you can see more on the artist's website http://www.petercallesen.com/index/index2.html

Requiem

2008-04-21T08:20:00.001-07:00

"Requiem" 46"x46" acrylic and oil on canvas on panel. '08

so much of the way i have come to look at life, and therefore (i suppose) my work is a 'baptism by fire'. taking the charred remains of something and working from them. this painting is an odd example of it. it is in acrylic and oil- a bit unusal for me. not actual fire. not wax. no crazy glossy layers....

the base...is where it begins. i had been repairing a painting for a customer. the painting had most recently hung in an environment somewhat exsposed to our wet winter and the stretcher had warped. i made a stretcher to fit the painting, but somehow (very frustratingly) once constructed and with several coats of primer, was too big for the actual painting. this was to the side taking up precious space in my studio as i was working on the new paintings for my current show.

the fabric i painted it on...i went into my fabric bin and pulled this out knowing that it was the right size. it wasn't until i started to stretch the fabric that i realized its origin. it is a thin, soft light yellow table cloth that i got from my wedding registry and i had on our kitchen table when i was married.

the base of this painting alone is a memoir of baptism by fire.

taking the frustrating experience of the painting repair and my failed marriage and making new use of them.

i was determined to make it a joyful painting despite it.

i remember going over the details of its origin with somebody as it sit before us, clean white- primed and ready to go.

"its going to be a happy painting!" i stated.

hmm....then i went to a performance of and subisiquently fell in love with Mozart's Requiem.

and whether i liked it or not- and believe me, i tried- the painting was determined to be a requiem all its own.

obsessed with that beautiful piece of music, i must have listened to it more than 50 times as i painted over those months....

so this painting that i mulled over so much trying to make it 'happy' is indeed "Requiem".

*note- something you can't tell too much in the image, many of the blocks from the center to the bottom of the painting are actually cut out of the fabric, exspose the texture of the wood base*

what is a Requiem???

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Requiem

Mozart's Requiem???

http://www.stmatthews.com/choir/mozartsrequiem.htm

Listen...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Gx-N-kdIXk (music only)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nl-wRbJoWVA (a part with the choral)

"Pushing Through"

2008-04-07T07:54:00.001-07:00

the opening reception for my current show "Pushing Through" at the Barnstone Gallery in phoenixville was friday. i had a good turn out and a good response.
for some reason this body of work took a great deal out of me.
not to mention there are 21 new paintings painted within the past 4 months in the show.

the owner of the gallery (a wonderful woman who really knows what she's doing) has a few links that you might want to check out...

this one takes you to my artist's page on the gallery website:
http://www.barnstonegallery.com/EricaBrown.html

and this one takes you to images of my work currently in the show there:
http://www.barnstonegallery.com/EricaBrown.html

thank you to all of you who made it out to the opening reception!!!
the show runs through to may 31st.

sharing

2008-03-11T11:33:00.000-07:00

sharing
i had to do this questionare for the gallery i have my show with in april.
i thought i'd share....

Please briefly describe your background, including where you live and how long you've been a practicing artist. (Please include any chronological details in your life that have influenced your current work.):

I live and have my studio in West Chester, PA. I was honored to study at Tyler School of Art with many wonderful professors. I have been creating art since I could hold a pencil or paintbrush in my hands. I have been pursuing a professional career in art since '04

What drives you to create?

Creating for me is close to breathing on the scale of what is necessary for me to be a functioning human being. I truly am not ok if I am not creating in some form. In a deeper sense, I continue to create (whether I feel like it or not) because I have seen people be deeply moved by my artwork. It is a humbling, beautiful thing. I continue to paint and share my work, hoping that people will continue to connect deeply to it.

What key emotion or feeling does your work represent?

There are several emotions that are represented in my work. The idea of Baptism by Fire- overcoming hardship- seeking hope in the face of hard times. There is also the aspect finding beauty in unlikely places/things. And of course the feeling of pushing through- both in persevering through life, and then more literally in the composition of my paintings.

What is unique about your process?

I find the paintings as I paint them. I may have an idea of what I want it to be, but as if the painting were alive and had equal share in what it turns out to be, we aim to find each other. While this intuitive type of creation is beautiful in its own right, and obviously the way I was made to do it, it can be a very exhausting, frustrating (sometimes nerve wrecking) experience. Also unique in my process are my materials. Sometimes I paint in Encaustic. Sometimes I paint in "mixed media"- basically everything and the kitchen sink. (plaster, wax, resin, polyurethane, shellac, enamel, tempera, acrylic, oil, colored pencil, dry pigments, ink, dye and gold leaf)

What does your work mean to you personally?

Goodness….it means a great deal to me. It is what I produce with my life. With my tired beat up hands. Hoping, praying that good things will come of them when they are finished and out "there" being viewed. I feel that it is my calling. One of the main reasons I exist. What I need to do with my life no matter how difficult it may make my life. I sacrifice what is necessary in my life to continue to do so.

Why does sharing art matter?

Art in any form has the ability to connect to others, insight depth, goodness, comfort and inspiration to those interacting with it. What good would it be if I painted endlessly and hid them all away?! I do not do it for myself alone. I do it to share. I do it in the hopes that somebody will be touched by it in a meaningful, (hopefully) positive way.

the best and the worst of me

2008-03-06T18:49:00.000-08:00

i have become very interested in the creative processes of artists and the psychological impact of creating works of art. if anybody has anything to offer (especially academically based) please share?
i'm finding some stuff on line, but i'm short on time so i'm cheating and asking for help.

i have been working like crazy on the work for my new show opening on april 4th. the goal is to have at least 24 new paintings for it. i have returned to encaustic partially- so about 1/3 of them are encaustic. while i get incredibly stressed out as i approach deadlines i have a feeling that this is going to be a really good show. if nothing else, the owner Lynn and her assistant Erin at the Barnestone Gallery are wonderful, professional people that i am honored to be working with again. and the space is beautiful.

being that i function on a rather intuitive creation process level....i am almost just as curious as everybody else what this new body of work will look like as a whole. i know it sounds strange.....many artists know what they're aiming for and paint what they see in their brains. i am a bit strange, i suppose, it is more like the paintings and i are trying to find each other as they are painted. i might have an idea of what i want, but then something happens ( a white rabbit of sorts) and i can't help but follow it and the painting winds up becoming very different than i would have ever imagined it to begin with. and this process is very emotionally draining, but often times very much worth the blood sweat and tears put into it. aiming to steer clear of crutches- things i know have worked before- and striving to grow/shedding skin....its painful, hard, at times i am so very aggravated with my paintings- i don't even want to look at them! but i have to. and i begrudgingly go back to the studio to face them. other days we move together in a beautiful waltz and it flows easily.....i wish i had more of those days!!! in talking to people about my approach increasingly, i am becoming curious about how other artist approach their creative processes and the psychological effect of creating.....

any thoughts?

Pushing Through

2008-02-26T16:05:00.000-08:00

"Pushing Through"

48"x48"

ink, dye, acrylic, enamel, shellac and plaster on panel.

febuary

2008-02-18T10:06:00.000-08:00

what strange weather we have! it feels like spring today...
and i am so excited about spring coming.
its been such a strange transitional phase for me.
i can think of nothing more beautiful than continuing to dig into my work for my upcomming show.
i am glad i took a little bit of time to slow down. (even if it was a bit forced- work schedule, sickness, homelessness, poverty! -life as a starving artist!)
i think if i kept going at the rate i had been my mind and artwork would have become mush.
now, crutches removed, i can focus more- dive in....sink my teeth into my paintings.
so hard to be at my jobs (necessity for a young starving artist- so as not to starve so much)
and not be painting. (though truly i am grateful for my jobs and love my bosses/co-workers/customers.)
i want to go for a drive and take in this beautiful weather, then lock myself in my studio for the rest of the day and night.
its hard working within a demanding bill-paying work schedule...
i anticipate greatly the someday of not feeling so torn. being able to just get lost in my painting as i chose.
God willing, that will come someday- but not without me digging in and doing my absolute best with what i have now, even though it be so very frustrating!

dispositions of a broken heart

2008-01-15T09:02:00.000-08:00

for those of you have known me for a while, you know that i have had the idea of the healing power of art deeply impressed upon my heart. whether it be by encourageing others to use artistic processes to promote healing or by connecting to artwork in a deep and meaningful way.

the idea of art and the process of healing.....basically is my heart itself!

for some reason this has specifically been on my heart in regaurds to CHOP in philly.

for so long i have prayed non-specifically about these heart strings....not knowing what will be done with such general longings someday.

today i very randomly stumbled upon this site.
http://www.healingartworks.org/index.htm

and proceeded to send a rather silly email to the director- pouring out my heart in gratitude for what they are doing and voluteering for whatever i could possibly do to help.

regaurdless- if i never get a response....it is so good to know that they are doing this.

check it out.

ha!

2008-01-11T15:40:00.000-08:00

got some good news today!
i have been trying to hash out with the acedemic advisor of tyler what i have left to finish to graduate. (when i last met with him he said i had at least one studio left) i have not had the money to return, and being that i am going through soft bankruptsy, i can't take out any more loans. a few weeks ago, my sister offered to pay for the last class to finally get my 9 years of on and off schooling done with.
i got a call from my advisor today, that after sorting through everything (i went to three different schools and changed my major twice). that i do not have any classes left at all. all i need to do is apply for graduation!!!!!!!!! HAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!
what a weight off my shoulders!!!!
and while there is still a lot on my plate.....well this helps for certain.

2007-12-31T11:42:00.000-08:00

do you think its possible to push yourself too far creatively? i suppose that emotional exhaustion often comes from getting deeply into the creational process. but how do you know when you've hit "too far"?
i've painted over 60 paintings since june. i believe it has taken its toll on me.
i am trying to find stuff online in regaurds to this- but am having no luck as of yet.

"I put my heart and my soul into my work, and have lost my mind in the process."
Vincent Van Gogh

monk by the sea

2007-12-21T08:57:00.000-08:00

"Monk by the Sea" Casper David Friedrich

(1809) Oil on canvas, 110 x 172 cm

"The key to understanding Friedrich's ideas and work is the link between landscape and religion. The majority of his best-known paintings are expressions of a religious mysticism. His landscapes seek not just the blissful enjoyment of a beautiful view, as in the Classic conception, but an instant of sublimity, a reunion with the spiritual self through the lonely contemplation of an overwhelming Nature. Friedrich said, "The painter should paint not only what he has in front of him, but also what he sees inside himself. If he sees nothing within, then he should stop painting what is in front of him." Colossal skies, storms, mist, ruins, scattered tracks of life (ancient altars, wrecked ships) and crosses bearing witness to the presence of God are frequent elements in Friedrich's landscapes.
Even some of his apparently non-symbolic paintings contain inner meanings, either religious or political, clues to which are provided either by Friedrich's writings or those of his literary friends.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caspar_David_Friedrich#Philosophy_and_motives

'It is splendid, in infinite loneliness by the shore of the sea under a cheerless sky, to stare at a limitless expanse of water; in part, this is due to the fact that one has gone there, that one must return, that one would like to cross over, that one cannot do so; that everything belonging to life is missing and that one hears one's own voice in the roar of the tide, in the billowing of the wind, in the passing of the clouds and in the lonely cry of the birds; in part it is due to a demand which is made by the heart and by the withdrawal of nature...'
http://some-landscapes.blogspot.com/2006/12/monk-by-sea.html

so inspiring.....

2007-12-20T08:14:00.000-08:00

it is neverending....
i look at what i've done, what i'm doing...
and the desire is constant- to do better.
not being satisfied with it as it is (though respecting everything in there time)
who was it that spoke of the artist's obsession with perfection....

"Perfectionism can drive people to accomplishments and provide the motivation to persevere in the face of discouragement and obstacles. Roedell (1984) argues that "in a positive form, perfectionism can provide the driving energy which leads to great achievement. The meticulous attention to detail necessary for scientific investigation, the commitment which pushes composers to keep working until the music realises the glorious sounds playing in the imagination, and the persistence which keeps great artists at their easels until their creation matches their conception all result from perfectionism".[5]..:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

i suppose its a certain ammount of arrogance (i hate to admit) "i know i can do better!"
but i suppose despite whatever self defined character flaws might be involved- it keeps me going...

monster

2007-12-18T09:08:00.000-08:00

Leon Golub was once of the many artist i studied on my own in art school. it is a wonderful things to have professors who take in and talk to you about your work and say, "do you know the artist......you should look at his work"

i don't remember who or when, but somebody recommended leon golub to me. it just so happended to be right around the time of his death. i took to reading over writings about his work and pouring over these intense, often gruesome paintings. i read of his mentality towards the artwork and why he did it. his heart was broken....he couldn't stand what aweful things the world could do- injustice, cruelity. he took huge loose canvas and painted, distressed it- often using a meat cleaver, and aimed to portray it beyond denial. this is happening and it is not okay. something about it all made me fall in love with him and consider him somebody to look up to if nothing else than in his willingness to follow what he felt he had to do with his art, rather than what would be popular or sell. and as is often true, for this he become very populer. here is some information i found that might help you understand my feelings towards him...

His "Burnt Men" series of 1960-61 conflated the heroic ideal of Greek sculpture with the barbarity of Art Brut to make paintings of blood-encrusted humanity, marked by Hiroshima and the Holocaust, with skin as seared and abraded as the canvas that he scraped with a meat cleaver. His "Gigantomachy" series of the mid-1960s tore off the smooth skin of the heroic gods and men battling on the Altar of Pergamon to expose what Golub called "documentary descriptions of reality, hysterically exact." At that point, Golub wanted to detach the violence he depicted "from specific circumstances or history."

quote from Diderot: "What is a monster: a being whose duration is incompatible with the present order of things." Golub was a righteous monster who reconciled painting with the unpalatable realities of his time.

http://www.feldmangallery.com/media/pdfs/golub%20obit%20in%20artnews.pdf

"Artists are part of the information process... Visual history is important in providing a record of what is going on – levels of intention, levels of confidence, levels of aggression or control. "(Leon Golub) "

a bio about him...

http://www.artmag.com/museums/a_irela/airduim/golub.html

what a beautiful 'monster'!

good fellow

2007-12-18T08:54:00.000-08:00

the link below is to an article written about a west chester based artist. i have met him a few times and he is a very kind, unassuming man who has found quite a lot of success in painting for the white house. it is a beautiful, refreshing thing to open the morning paper to a front page article about a local artist and at the same time know he is not only so talented, but a good guy as well.
http://www.dailylocal.com/WebApp/appmanager/JRC/Daily;jsessionid=n7XzHmDZh3WLp1GRJcfmYRt2F2JSK78nlCGn4dkLq6p3Rytj012h!1604856637?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=pg_article&r21.pgpath=%2FDLN%2FHome&r21.content=%2FDLN%2FHome%2FContentTab_News_1277084

letters to God

2007-12-16T11:47:00.000-08:00

a friend emailed me a bunch of these letters written by children to God. cracked me up so i though i'd share-

of abstract art...

2007-12-03T09:20:00.000-08:00

"However, with the coming of abstraction, artists had, for the first time, a powerful tool that would allow them to bypass literal perception and reach into this otherwise impenetrable world of unconscious emotion. This was possible because, the more abstract a work of art, the less preconceptions it evokes in the mind of the beholder. "

"The reason abstract art has the potential to be so powerful is that it keeps the conscious distractions to a minimum."

to read the rest of the article go to....
http://www.harley.com/art/abstract-art/index.html

Open Studio Event

2007-11-26T09:28:00.000-08:00

Open Studio Event
hello everybody!i would love for you to come let me wine and cheese you (that is if you are of age- not for cheese) this sunday. i am having an open studio event to share with anybody who wants to come to my little (really little) space that i work out of. its a collision of worlds as those who support me come into my solitary space where i create. see details below. let me know if you have any questions...

Erica Brown- Open Studio Event
Sunday, December 2nd3pm-7pm

quotes from artists...

2007-11-19T09:40:00.000-08:00

"Art is a collaboration between God and the artist, and the less the artist does the better." Andre Gide

"I merely took the energy it takes to pout and wrote some blues."_Duke Ellington

"The painting has a life of its own. I try to let it come through."_Jackson Pollock

"I shut my eyes in order to see. "_Paul Gauguin

"The position of the artist is humble. He is essentially a channel. "
Piet Mondrian

upcoming events

2007-11-19T09:30:00.000-08:00

Art in the Storefront Gallery

i had the reception last friday, but the show will be up until january 16th. if you happen to be in the area, stop by and check it out. i did a series of 7 town scenes of the ambler area. having lived there 2 years ago, i still have quite a fondness for the area.
41 East Butler Ave
Ambler, PA

Open Studio Event

i will open the doors of my little, meager studio to accomodate all of those who have been wanting to see the space i work in. i hope it will be a wonderful collision of worlds- bringing people i love and those who have supported me into the space where i create in my solitude. come let me wine and cheese you!!! (and see what i'm working on)
Friday, December 2nd 3-7pm (email rsvp if able)

2007-11-05T07:55:00.000-08:00

someday....i hope to not work so much. to not feel guilty when spending time with friends, that i am not working, either at a job to pay the bills or at my artwork.
i dream of only having to paint, but even if i work myself to the bone that is not garunteed.
so what do i do?
well, i chose to work as hard as i possibly can and try to make the most of it.
let my bill paying jobs not just be jobs, but another avenue to work hard and well and love the people put in my path.
and at the same time work very hard at my artwork, and somehow try to get rest and stay in touch with loved ones.
it is hard.
but some have it so much harder!
i must not function in self pity, yet understanding that i do need to push myself very hard and it will be hard sometimes.

i cannot base my future on miracles, they are unexpected and delightful surprises. i cannot base my stability on those somedays,
but right here and right now just work as hard as i possibly can and do my best.
what more can i do?
try try try again.

review

2007-10-08T08:25:00.000-07:00

this was in the Philadelphia Inquirer on 9/30

"Arts Scene. There's a peculiar potency in Erica Brown's modest, unimposing approach as a painter at Arts Scene in West Chester.
The magic of her art may be subtle, but it's by no means superficial. Her largely abstract landscapes are dense with encaustic, acrylic and mixed-media paint laid on in roughly geometric blocks and showing an interest in texture and line. More tentative are her darkling architectural vistas.
Gradually one realizes that the true subject of this West Chester artist is the rigorous formal balance of her compositions and the intense skill with which they are created."

larger article titled "Videos try to illuminate politics"

crazy things....

2007-09-10T08:57:00.000-07:00

a crazy, but good time....hopefully the first of many...

basking

2007-09-10T07:59:00.000-07:00

overwhelming- what resides with me now is a deep sense of gratitude....trying to let all of the good things i heard over the past couple days in regaurds to my show pass through me. retain what encouragement is needed, anything i need to learn from....take it all with a grain of salt. go ahead and humble myself now. my heart full and my body and soul ready to turn over the new leaf, put my head down and keep working. it is very hard labor, but not without a very worthy cause. all in the hopes that this is not about me. yes, that i would be provided for- to be able to keep going, but without the need for glory...trying to direct it upward. i hope they understand...

"Away"

2007-08-20T08:05:00.000-07:00

hello?

2007-08-20T07:52:00.000-07:00

arg....i'm trying to figure out how to do this....hope my loved ones find me here!!!

painting- a passionate and maddening dance

2007-08-20T07:38:00.000-07:00