Statement
Landscapes that look as if they have been formed or marked by people but abandoned by them. Evocative, crumbling interiors and their impact on the subjects that inhabit the charged and decaying space. If I practice a form of archaeology, it is to unearth visual history but not to exhibit the fragments categorically or for a specified purpose. More concerned with the coexistence of multiple narratives than the presentation of one coalesced truth, my goal is to create a convincing and resonant space for the viewer to inhabit, while leaving the image open to interpretation.
My painting process is an intuitive dialogue with the composition as it develops on the canvas, with most pieces undergoing multiple permutations before acquiring a final form. Objects emerge, are scratched out and painted over, or are left as fragments and glimpses. The painting becomes a palimpsest with veiled skins obscured below the surface, and is successful when it manifests as a tangible object, fleshy and fetishistic
Biography
Erin Donnelly’s paintings are delicate re-imaginations of landscapes and the events of strangers. Though voyeuristic, they read as deeply personal reinterpretations in that they also seem to question the impact of the observer on the observed landscape. Donnelly studied drawing and painting while receiving a degree in social and cultural anthropology from UC Berkeley. Her degree work focused on mythological and religious traditions in contemporary cultures, and her painting practice continues this line of investigation.
She has been represented by Art Explosions Studios in San Francisco, CA, Rembrandt Yard and Exhibitrek Gallery in Boulder, Colorado, and the Enso Gallery in Denver, CO. Click here for a link to Selected Exhibitions
She currently lives in the Shenandoah Valley with her daughter and husband, and occupies her time painting and teaching workshops.
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SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2011 Casting The Lake- Arts Council of the Valley's Smith House Gallery,
Harrisonburg, Virginia
2010 Four Forms- Augusta Health Center, Fishersville Virginia
Interior Figures- Arts Council of the Valley, Harrisonburg Virginia
Abstractions, Arts Council of the Valley, Harrisonburg Virginia
Bird Paintings, The Yellow Button, Harrisonburg Virginia
Solo Show- The Artful Dodger, Harrisonburg Virginia
2009 Solo Show The Darjeeling Café, Staunton Virginia
2008 Interiority- Enso Gallery, Denver Colorado
2006 Ritual- Exhibitrek, Boulder Colorado
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2008 Contemporary Art Auction- BMOCA, Boulder Colorado
2007 Art on the Walls- BMOCA, Boulder Colorado
2005 Contemporary Art Auction- BMOCA, Boulder Colorado
Rembrandt Yard, Boulder Colorado
Art on the Walls- BMOCA, Boulder Colorado
2004 Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art (BMOCA), Boulder Colorado
2003 Melt- Art Explosion Studios, San Francisco California.
2002 Freeze- Art Explosion Studios, San Francisco California
2001 MindsPace- Sarah2 Gallery, Oakland California
BIO
Erin Donnelly studied drawing and painting while receiving a degree in social and cultural anthropology from UC Berkeley. Her degree work focused on mythological and religious traditions in contemporary cultures, and her painting practice continues this line of investigation. Erin has worked variously as an archaeologist, interior designer and landscape designer in addition to her studio practice. While working at The Wiseman Group Interior Design in San Francisco, she designed a rug for Doris Leslie Blaus Designer Collection that was selected as one of the best designs of the century in Architectural Digests Great Design Issue in March 2003. The California native then moved to Boulder with her husband and undertook graduate level work at CU Boulder, exhibiting at the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, Rembrandt Yard Studios, Exhibtrek Gallery, and Enso Gallery in Denver. She and her family have recently landed in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley for a spell before continuing their goal to roam the world. She continues a full-time studio practice while offering painting workshops to adults and children and is available for private lessons.
She has been represented by Exhibitrek Gallery and Blink Gallery in Boulder, and Enso Gallery in Denver. You can view her work locally at The Yellow Button and Clementine Cafe in Harrisonburg, Virginia. An upcoming solo show has been commissioned by the Arts Council of the Valley for May 2011, entitled "Casting The Lake" which will be the investigation of memories and dreams sourced from the artist's childhood summers spent at the family's lake cabin.
erindonnelly.blogspot.com
