Artist statement

The intention behind my work is to grasp the sense of beauty and wonder that accompanies a child’s view of the world.  My art is a constant pursuit to maintain our connection to beauty and wonder while also acknowledging our separation from them. I choose each photograph as the base for an encaustic piece because there is some element of the image that resonates with this feeling of separation or acknowledgment of beauty.  Encaustic medium is the physical representation of it in my work. However, my goal with photo encaustic is to reach the point where the wax begins to blend into the photograph and one is drawn into the scene rather than away from it. The boundary between the viewer and the image becomes fluid and translucent. Alternatively, using oil and cold wax, I free myself from the constraints of an image and try to reach the same connections and emotions by employing complementary elements of color, shape and line. I will often connect the two mediums of encaustic and oil via diptychs that initiate a conversation between the two ideas.

exhibitions

UPCOMING…May 9-11 BOCO Art Show, Greenville, SC

2019 Trees, PhotoPlace Gallery, Middlebury, VT

2019 Abstract, Southeast Center for Photography, Greenville, SC

2019 44th Annual Juried Show, Anderson, SC

2019 Texture, NYA Gallery, New York, NY

2018 Fauna, Southeast Center for Photography

2018 The Art Gallery on Pendleton Square

2018    43rd Annual Juried Show, Anderson Arts Center

2017    42st Annual Juried Show, Anderson Arts Center

2016    41st Annual Juried Show, Anderson Arts Center

2015    40th Annual Juried Show, Anderson Arts Center

2015     Wildlife Shoot: Photographers on Assignment, Anderson Arts Center

2014    39th Annual Juried Show, Anderson Arts Center

representation

Laguna Art Gallery, Laguna Beach, California

Indigo, Anderson, South Carolina

City Seed, Anderson, South Carolina

collections

Anderson Arts Center Permanent Collection

awards

2019 Merit Award for “Rest”, Anderson Arts Center

2018   Mark Hoyle Merit Award, Floral Arts Purchase Award

2017    Callie Stringer Rainey Award

2016    Bruce Campbell Merit Award

website publications

2017    “16 Timeless Photos of the Sea that will Inspire You”, Feature Shoot, 2017.     http://www.featureshoot.com/2017/07/16-timeless-photos-sea-will-inspire/ 

2014    “Sailing the Chesapeake Bay with Erin Hughes”, Let the Kids, 2014.                                     http://letthekids.com/erin-hughes-sailing-day/