Erin Armstrong - Crumbs in the Glitter

ERIN ARMSTRONG “CRUMBS IN THE GLITTER”

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ERIN ARMSTRONG

‘CRUMBS IN THE GLITTER

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SELF-PORTRAIT, 2019

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ERIN ARMSTRONG Erin est une artiste contemporaine travaillant and habitant à Toronto, CA. Centré sur le figuratif, son travail s’intéresse aux méandres de l’imagination, dont l’artiste exprime visuellement à travers différentes techniques d’application de peinture (coulures, couches superposées, traits rapides). Elle est particulièrement intriguée par la manière dont l’esprit peut créer des mondes, en rassemblant les éléments de la mémoire, de l’expérience, de la capacité de l’œil et de l’esprit à produire une non-réalité.

Erin entreprend la technique du portrait dans l’art contemporain en reprenant certaines conventions.

Elle s’appuie sur ce genre, comme fondement de ses explorations, mais choisit de dépeindre, non pas une personne ou un modèle, mais une atmosphère ou une sensation exprimée à travers qualités formelles des formes humaine.

Son travail a déjà été exposé de nombreuses fois au Canada, aux Etats-Unis, en Angleterre, en Australie, en Suède et en Suisse.

Erin is a contemporary figurative artist working and living in Toronto, CA. Her work looks into the human imagination as it is expressed visually. She is particularly intrigued by the ways in which the mind can conjure and create worlds by piecing together memory, experience, and the ability of the mind’s eye to render a non-reality. She draws on the genre of portraiture as a foundation for these explorations, but chooses to depict not a person or sitter, but an atmosphere or sensation expressed inside the formal qualities of human shapes.

She was named Saatchi’s “Ones to Watch”, Designlines magazine called her one of “Toronto’s Art Stars” and BlogTO counted her as one of the years “Most Talked About Artists'”. She has created work for clients such as Nike, The Drake Hotel Toronto and Drake Devonshire, Anthropologie, The Broadview Hotel, Portia De Rossi and Ellen DeGeneres’ “General Public Art", Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale”, and Kit+Ace.

Her work has been exhibited extensively throughout Canada and the United States as well as England, Australia, Scotland, Switzerland, and Sweden. She is working on her two upcoming solo shows in Toronto and Geneva in 2019.

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A CONVERSATION WITH THE ARTIST…..

1) What inspired you to name the exhibition “Crumbs In The Glitter”?

This body of work is an examination of the human condition and what it feels like to be alive today. We are living in an age of rapid change and with that comes excitement, beauty and joy, but also anxieties and uncertainty. The paintings intend to highlight the intersection of these feelings. Using burst of light, biblical animals like snakes and fish falling from the sky, and disillusioned/melancholic figures, I hope to create a visual emotional language by capturing the feeling of being alive today. “Crumbs In The Glitter” is a reference to this mixed feeling of the joys of life or “glitter” with the anxiety or “crumbs” sprinkled into the human experience.

2) You have such a distinct style that is truly yours and yours alone. How did you come about to discovering it.

I didn’t go to university for art, so I had a somewhat unique journey learning how to paint and finding my artistic voice/ style. Since I didn’t learn traditional painting techniques in school, it was a lot of trial and error and experimentation, which in tern I believe helped me carve out my own unique voice. I use the human figure in ambiguous abstract ways, I’m not so much interested in portraying a literal person, rather I use the human body a vessel to portray an emotion in the paintings. I use a lot of bright pastel colours, set against lush landscapes or interiors, because I like the juxtaposition of a somewhat joyous palette/environment set again the backdrop of sometimes melancholic, abstract and mysterious subjects. I ended up with a style that aims to balance large gestural brush strokes with tight patterning and lines to create a sort of controlled chaos.

3) At what moment in life did you realize your calling was to be an artist?

I started making art when I was very young. My mom is a painter and I would go to her studio all the time, she taught me how to paint very early on. Art was always something I did and was surrounded by growing up, so in a way I always knew it was what I was going to do, I can’t really imagine doing anything else.

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4) What other artists inspire you. Past and present?

So many! I’m inspired by Danny Fox, George Condo, Summer Wheat, Coady Brown, Kathryn MacNaughton, Celeste Rapone, David Hockney, Elizabeth Peyton, Jonas Wood, Yvonne Robert, Matisse, Calvin Marcus, Philip Guston, Alex Katz, Emma Kohlmann, Christina Quartes, Robin Francis Williams, Adam Lee, Erin Loree, Greg Ito, Helen Frankenthaler and many many more 5) There has been a strong shift in the role of social media in an artists career. Truly there are many positives associated with self promotion, but do you think there are any drawback to self promoting on social media?

I think social media has altered the landscape for the art world and changed the way artists can enter the space, which is awesome. It opens the door to so many opportunities that otherwise weren’t available.

That being said, I think the role of a gallery in promoting an artist is still really important and being an “instagram artist” only doesn’t open the same doors or opportunities. People need to see the work in public spaces and on gallery walls in real life, not just through a phone screen. I think having a gallery promoting an artist and putting their weight behind them says something and is necessary for the growth of an artists career.

6) The art scene in Canada is such small one compared to the US or Europe. Do you find there is a sense of camaraderie amongst emerging artists and how does it benefit you?

It is a very small group of people in Canada and it seems most people know each other or at least know of the others work. Social media again has been really helpful to stay connected. I’ve made relationships with a ton of Canadian artists, galleries and dealers just through instagram. People reach out to me all the time on social media or email asking to come by for studio visits, get coffee, participate in a show etc. so I definitely feel a sense of camaraderie.

7) what is in store for your art in the upcoming years?

"I’m hoping to experiment more and try to push the work in new directions over the coming years. Before COVID-19, I was slated to head to the U.S. in April to complete an artist residency at The Vermont Studio Centre. Followed in May, by a group show in Detroit at The Library Street Collective. Both projects have obviously been halted for the time being, but I’m hopeful once life gets back to normal these project will still resume!"

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Sway, 2020. Acrylic on canvas 48 x 48 in 8

Apocalypse Now Can You Roll The Window Down?, 2020. Acrylic on canvas 40 x 40 in 9

Lemon, 2020 Acrylic on canvas. 60 x 48 in 10

Waiting on Forever, 2019. Acrylic on canvas. 48 x 36 in 11

Clementine, 2020. Acrylic on canvas 48 x 48 in 12

Specks, 2020 Acrylic on canvas 48 x 60 in 13

Pass the Salt, 2020 Acrylic on canvas 48 x 60 in 14

Crumbs in the Glitter, 2020. Acrylic on canvas. 40 x 40 in.

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Juggler, 2020. Acrylic on canvas. 30 x 22 in.

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Shake Vundawa, 2018. Acrylic on canvas. 87 x 71 in.

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Pitfall, 2020. Acrylic on canvas. 48 x 60 in 18

Breathe Until I Evaporate, 2020. Acrylic on canvas. 40 x 40 in 19

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