Erica is an artist studying at PSU who contributed her artwork to Pathos Literary Magazine in the Winter 2016 edition. We asked her some questions about her artistic processes, favorite things, and current projects.
An elk skull recently finished by Erica. “I used acrylic paint, wire, a preserved carpenter bee, a pressed fern, and a prism,” she told us.
Q: What are your favorite art mediums to work with?
A: My favorite art mediums to work with are salvaged animal bones and acrylic paint. I clean the bones and use them as a canvas. I also really enjoy anything I find in nature: clay, marker, colored pencil, and oil pastels.
Q: Where do you draw inspiration from?
A: I draw inspiration mostly from nature and exploring the human condition. Fauna & flora. I am also very much inspired by anthropology and spirituality. I see art as my way of exploring what it means to live and die.
Q: What is your favorite movie?
A: My favorite movie has been Beetlejuice ever since I was little.
Q: What do you do about creative blocks?
A: When I feel I am having a creative block, I usually will go out in nature and study patterns and natural color schemes. That way I can try and understand how things work. You can really find an answer to anything in the forest. Every time I go out in nature, I always find something new that inspires me.
Q: What project(s) are you currently working on?
A: I always have too many art projects I’m working on. I’m one of those people will start many projects and return to them later. I’ve been working on this old dollhouse I am turning into a mini art installation. I painted it black and dripped different colors of melted crayon to make a sort of rainbow ectoplasm. On the walls I added some photography I did of spiders in small antique frames. I’m most likely going to add little art installations of bone and taxidermy animals. I’m also finishing up a custom order which was a zebra print painted antler necklace.
