Erickka

Patmore

First- I have a little announcement! I’m very pleased to write that I’m part of the group show “Every Nook and Cranny”, on display from December 5th-January 3rd at https://thejunctioncreativestudio.com/thewoodsartspace/. This will be full of great local art that is small in scale, so it makes a great opportunity for some holiday shopping if you’re in the YQR area. More details, including a Facebook Live reception, are to come soon, including *crosses fingers* private viewing opportunities!

My paintings “These lights are bright!” and “Misty Eyes”, on display with my paintings in my portfolio, will be available for the duration of the show. Feel free to reach out to The Woods Art Space (follow the link above) for more information!

Anyways- here’s what I’ve got for this week.

Why i could never stick to one art style, and wouldn’t want to anyways

Ever since March, I’ve been focusing on working with paint. This has, in time, evolved into a sort of abstract-figurative style, and I’ve been developing that alongside this newfound interest in painting. That being said, however, this is far from the only style I’ve ever worked in, and sometimes I feel like my brain is a revolving door of new directions to take my work, new techniques to try, and new subject matter to explore. I’ve experimented with representative and graphic, collage, copper etching, screenprint, pastels, and more.

I know that many artists prefer to stick to one style, media, etc.and master it, and that definitely makes sense for a few different reasons. For example, the more time, energy and focus you give one area you want to explore (whether it be in art making or otherwise), the more you’re likely to excel in that area, and the more recognizable your work will become, but the less time and energy you have to give to other areas you might also want to explore. So, if you’re willing to spend that time and energy focusing on one or a few things, there is great potential for you to grow, but it comes at the expense of not being able to spend that time doing anything else.

However, if you’re an early-career, emerging bean such as myself, and you’re open to whatever the art world wants to throw at you, I encourage you not to be too rigid when it comes to choosing the style you want to pursue. If it hadn’t been for the fact that I was stuck in my house for most of April and May, I would have stuck to my comfort haven of printmaking and never branched out to painting, something I have found some great joy in. I think it’s great to have a direction in mind and a skill you’d like to master, but I’ve learned that it’s fun to go with the flow sometimes and see where that takes you, too.

I’ve got all of my experiments with media and subject matter up on my site, because if not for all of these little stepping stones, I firmly believe I wouldn’t be the artist I am today; no matter what you do, your creative experiences build and layer on each other and result in your own developed, unique way of art making over time. No matter what you make, if you make it with passion, people will see the passion, and the “you” in it. For now, and as I continue developing as an artist, I’ll keep making my happy little path as I go.

Sincerely, someone who might just switch up directions on you from time to time