Esther Ervin
Biography
I am an interdisciplinary visual artist born and raised in Somerville, New Jersey, where my explorations in art began. I have a BS in Biology from UC Irvine, CA and an MFA in Fine Art/Illustration from CSU Long Beach,CA.
Between degrees, as a Peace Corps volunteer in Colombia, I taught art, science and Spanish at a farm school; then later worked with families of coffee growers. Inspired by drawing for the Peace Corps Health Handbook and for a Bogotá cardiologist, I decided to resume studying art.
I explore new techniques, take specialized workshops and enjoy working in various mediums; focusing on environment, politics or abstract works. My jewelry has been exhibited in Washington, Oregon, Beijing, China; Vilnius and Palanga, Lithuania and in Legnica and Gdansk, Poland and I have had five solo exhibitions.
My artistic life has been punctuated by satisfying experiences with print-making and book-making. The first exposure was in junior high, where we made an entire book from scratch, even carving stamps to print our cover stock and sewing signatures together. In high school I was one of 2 students who silk-screened football and other event posters. I also ran a Ditto machine and did blue-line layouts for the yearbook. As a graduate student I practiced intaglio printing for two quarters at UC Irvine before moving on to study illustration at CSU Long Beach where I took classes in mechanical paste-up, drafting and graphic design. Most recently, I had the pleasure of taking a linoleum block printing class with Daniel Minter at Pratt Fine Arts Center.
Lately, in my home-studio, where we do fine art giclée prints, I have been recycling misprints, test prints and trimmings into pamphlets, stacks of signatures and small books.
Artist Statement
The work samples below are both older and very recent examples of my explorations in book art. All are constructed from or include repurposed materials, so that while experimenting , I have freedom to play without concern over ruining new materials. The pamphlets, junk journal and signature stacks are not an end in themselves. Some have been used to experiment in collage, watercolor and a variety of mediums.
This residency offers an opportunity to add substance and skills beyond my past encounters with printmaking and bookmaking. I look forward to learning to compose with type and images to add meaningful and appealing content to my artistic work. I anticipate that being able to use new technology and vintage machinery will open up new possibilities for creative communication. Life events definitely happen for a reason and my past experiences have prepared me for this moment and this residency.
Statement of Intent
Throughout my artistic life I have had a variety of experiences with print and book arts. Now, since experimenting with book arts, I feel a pressing need to understand and explore the possibilities of print. Since reading about this residency, visiting your websites and the Editions studio, I see that some of these experiences have led me in this direction.
Interestingly, I have access to a Chandler & Price Pilot press at the James and Janie Washington Foundation in the Central District, a stone lithography press, with a variety of limestone plates, book-presses, silk-screens and related equipment that is unused. During my 20-year association with the Foundation I wondered what possibilities these vintage devices had. This residency will answer those questions and enable me to activate them and begin to establish a print studio there for the benefit of future artists-in-residence at the Foundation.
I have already begun to envision a project that will be meaningful to the James Washington Foundation and help realize the vision Mr. Washington had when he left his home and studio as an asset for the artistic community.
