Aimee Erickson's Exhibition Catalog - 2019

Aimee Erickson

Vessels | Solo Exhibition

Augst 30 - September 7, 2019

Aimee Erickson

Vessels | Solo Exhibition Augst 30 - September 7, 2019 Cover: (detail) Something To Think About oil 30x30

Meyer Gallery

225 Canyon Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico www.meyergalleries.com

“Color has emotional weight and is related to the shape of space. Drawing or painting, for me, means to look at the thing and transmit its vitality to the canvas.”

Aimee Erickson (b. 1967, Paris) is an oil painter living in Portland, Oregon.

She was trained as an illustrator and has developed a warm, inviting pictorial voice grounded in traditional realism, informed by the principles of design, and inspired by nature and human experience. She holds a BFA in Visual Communication Design, and has also studied with a number of prominent painters including Sherrie McGraw, David Leffel, Burton Silverman, Joseph Paquet, William Park, Stephen Hayes, and Ray Roberts.

Aimee is the first woman artist to paint an Oregon gubernatorial portrait, that of Barbara Roberts in 1997. The portrait hangs in the Oregon State House, upstairs on the legislature side.

Aimee teaches studio and plein-air painting, drawing, and color theory locally and at venues nationwide. She has a particular interest in what enables or inhibits our progress as artists. How do we learn to see what we cannot yet see?

How do our beliefs influence our ability to perceive? What is the role of knowledge in the realm of choice? How do we “tune in” to our artistic perception?

Aimee’s work has been awarded top prizes in many national competitions, including Oil Painters of America, American Women Artists, the Portrait Society of America, and multiple notable plein air competitions.

Something To Think About oil 30x30

Portland, Oregon painter Aimee Erickson presents new paintings for her solo exhibition, “Vessels,” opening August 30th from 5-7pm. Erickson’s body of work includes figurative paintings, still lifes and illuminated interiors that signify comforting containment. “The theme of “Vessels” reflects my interest in what is or has been contained or held, whether by a vessel such as an antique pitcher, an ordinary dish like a plate or a bowl, by the interior space of a room, or by a person,” says Erickson.

Ingrid’s Peony oil 10x8

Big Set Up With Daffodils oil 24x35

Interior, Cake Shop oil 23.75x32

Russian Bath House oil 15x20

No matter what shape or look each “vessel” takes, Erickson’s subjects are literal or symbolic containers of human life or vitality. Still life paintings range from bright and bold to dark and moody, reflecting changing moods with varied lighting, perspectives and color tones. Her architectural and natural landscapes juxtapose inner and outer worlds, aligning similarly with her figures that suggest layers of human emotion.

Lilacs On A Table oil 27x24

Sunset At The Falls oil 14x18

Russia Kostroma Market Place oil 20x27.75

Still Life With Pink Roses oil 16x20

Russia Interior Kostroma oil 24x16

Spidermums And Blue Bowls oil 16x20

Erickson translates her ideas and subjects onto canvas with liveliness, working with viscous paint, quick brushwork, warm color palettes or bold juxtaposed patterns. In this way, Erickson’s paintings become vessels themselves - denoting vitality as well as containing years of the artist’s personal observations, influences and experiences. “Inevitably and happily, there is something of my own inner world in every painting,” she says.

Russian Green oil 12x19

Vase, Plum, Viridian oil 11x14

“You'll see certain objects repeated in the still life paintings: they hold special appeal for me. There are interiors: light enters a room through a window, silhouetting anything near it and sending reflections back and forth across the surfaces inside. Two paintings include figures, without being portraits per se: the landscape of the human face can be depicted in such a way that the person's inner world is somehow revealed.”

Quince and Cornish Pitch oil 18x18

Interior, A Cafe oil 23.75x32

Russia, View From A Bridge oil 15x20

Still Life With White Saucepan oil 18x24

White Peonies oil 14x18

Still Life With White Pitcher and Persimmon oil 18x24

Russian Church At Dusk oil 12x17

Interior, Cha Cha Cha oil 23.75x32

Aimee Erickson grew up in Sunnyvale, California and has lived and worked in Portland for 25 years. Trained as an illustrator, she holds a BFA in Visual Communication Design from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. Since becoming a full-time professional painter, Erickson has received numerous awards in national competitions including Oil Painters of America, American Women Artists, the Portrait Society of America, and several notable plein air competitions.

Peonies and Sunlight oil 17x24

Color has emotional weight and is related to the shape of space. Drawing or painting, for me, means to look at the thing and trnasmit its vitality to the canvas.

-Aimee Erickson

Russia, Ipatiyev Monastery oil 23x32

By The Window oil 24x30

Gabriel Park oil 24x36

Girl With Apples oil 17x24

Haiku oil 8x10

Aimee Erickson Big Set Up With Daffodils

By The Window Gabriel Park Girl With Apples Haiku Ingrid’s Peony Interior, Cha Cha Cha Interior, A Cafe Interior, A Cake Shop Lilacs On A Table Peonies And Sunlight Quince and Cornish Pitcher Russia, Interior Kostroma Russia, Kostroma Market Place Russia, Ipatiyev Monastery Russian Bath House Russian Church At Dusk Russian Green Something To Think About Spidermums And Blue Bowls Still Life With Pink Roses Still Life With White Pitcher and Persimon Still Life With White Saucepan Sunset At The Falls Vase, Plum, Viridian White Peonies No. 3 White Peonies

Vessels | Solo Exhibition 24x35 24x30 24x36 17x24 8x10 10x8 23.75x32 23.75x32 23.75x32 27x24 17x24 18x18 24x16 20x27.75 23x32 15x20 12x17 12x19 30x30 16x20 16x20 16x20 18x24 14x18 11x14 12x12 14x18

$7,000 $6,000 $7,000 $4,500 $1,100 $1,100 $7,000 $7,000 $7,000 $5,800 $4,000 $3,000 $3,500 $5,000 $6,000 $3,000 $2,000 $2,200 $9,000 $3,000 $3,000 $3,000 $4,000 $2,500 $1,800 $1,500 $2,500

Aimee Erickson

White Peonies No. 3 oil 12x12

Vessels | Solo Exhibition August 30- September 7, 2019 | Solo Exhibition Artist Reception Friday, August 30, 5-7 PM 225 Canyon Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico 505.983.1434 www.meyergalleries.com