Erik Minter American, b. 1979
"The paintings are not of anyone at this particular time, but for me they act as portraits of strangers that carry our emotions through their facial attitudes”. – Erik Minter
Erik Minter's work plays on bold, vibrant colour combinations often met with sky-tone gradients that weave between graphical shapes and fluid-like splashes. Combining abstraction with surreal figuration, Minter has moved from digital drawings and photographic manipulations to paint and the physical surface, seeking to capture the emotion of experiences, either lived or dreamed, and to express his feelings and curiosity about life. With different layers that unfold over time, each work gives way to new discoveries.
Human emotions and interactions, the persistence of memory and the importance of nostalgia. These are the core pillars behind the conception of Erik Minter’s latest series of works. Heavily inspired by his coastal surroundings, the artist draws on the natural world around him, recontextualising it into paintings that capture the ephemeral. He seeks meaning in painterly expression through experimenting with his own physical limits that aids in bridging abstraction into a surreal figuration. This comes to life through the use of gestural brushstrokes, bold colours and composition subjects that are layered with detailed swirls of acrylic and spray.
Erik Minter (b. 1979, USA) spent his childhood years in Southern Maryland. After completing a Life Study Course at the Corcoran Museum in Washington, he went on to complete a BA at the Pratt Institute, New York. Selected exhibitions include: Portraits and Consensus Works, 19 Karen Contemporary Art Space (2021); Collective Synergy, A Screaming Art Group Online Exhibition (2021); Summer Gathering, GR Gallery (2020); When Spiders Unite, They Can Tie Down a Lion, Daniel Raphael Gallery, London (2020), Art Walk, Hotel Indigo, NY (2009).
