By Abereena Xu
Erin Hu is a visual artist and Grade 12 student at Collingwood School. She has been taking art classes at Morven since Grade 8 and is currently completing both Art 12 and AP Art. Erin enjoys studying and making art, and especially likes the creative process that allows her to conceptualize, plan, create and show her work. Her favourite medium is painting: she prefers to use watercolours, but also works with oils and multimedia. A self-confessed perfectionist, Erin acknowledges that there is value in processes of art-making and viewing that extend beyond aesthetic qualities. While a work of art can beautify a space, it does not mean that art is made to match the colour of someone’s sofa. Art has many functions, including the ability to explore and communicate ideas visually. Erin’s inquiries into the theme of balance play out through her recent work.
Erin’s painting, Flow, is inspired by one of her favourite artists, Claude Monet. In Erin’s hands, the paintbrush imposes balance and order; however, she allows paint drips to interfere with the sense of control imposed on the canvas. The process of experimentation allows Erin to simultaneously create and witness beauty through unpredictable means. The piece is a large abstract that combines two different paintings. She has used a complementary colour scheme with variations of blue and orange hues and tones. She wanted both the content and techniques used to convey a sense of ‘play.’ She added texture to the surface and experimented with dripping paint to convey movement. She encourages viewers to consider the way the painting changes when rotated and displayed upside down or sideways. There is not only one way to view and experience an abstract piece: the emphasis, she says, is on movement and motion expressed in the work. Which one moves you?
Erin Hu is a visual artist and Grade 12 student at Collingwood School. She has been taking art classes at Morven since Grade 8 and is currently completing both Art 12 and AP Art. Erin enjoys studying and making art, and especially likes the creative process that allows her to conceptualize, plan, create and show her work. Her favourite medium is painting: she prefers to use watercolours, but also works with oils and multimedia. A self-confessed perfectionist, Erin acknowledges that there is value in processes of art-making and viewing that extend beyond aesthetic qualities. While a work of art can beautify a space, it does not mean that art is made to match the colour of someone’s sofa. Art has many functions, including the ability to explore and communicate ideas visually. Erin’s inquiries into the theme of balance play out through her recent work.
Erin’s painting, Flow, is inspired by one of her favourite artists, Claude Monet. In Erin’s hands, the paintbrush imposes balance and order; however, she allows paint drips to interfere with the sense of control imposed on the canvas. The process of experimentation allows Erin to simultaneously create and witness beauty through unpredictable means. The piece is a large abstract that combines two different paintings. She has used a complementary colour scheme with variations of blue and orange hues and tones. She wanted both the content and techniques used to convey a sense of ‘play.’ She added texture to the surface and experimented with dripping paint to convey movement. She encourages viewers to consider the way the painting changes when rotated and displayed upside down or sideways. There is not only one way to view and experience an abstract piece: the emphasis, she says, is on movement and motion expressed in the work. Which one moves you?
Flow (vertical)
|
Flow (vertical/reverse)
|
Flow (horizontal)
|
Flow (horizontal/reverse)
|
Erin’s watercolour collection of scenes from around Canada also pays homage to Claude Monet. Working primarily with green and blue hues and tones as well as black and white, she has been able to create a sense of continuity despite the geographical differences across the Canadian landscape. She explored questions of colour, composition, scale and focal point during the art-making process to determine what makes a work of art pleasing to look at. Which one do you find to be the most eye-catching? Which setting is most inviting to you?
Erin’s multimedia collage entitled, Little Betty, is presented in a shadow box that contains layers of painted paper images depicting people and a cityscape. She experiments with scale, which underscores the disconnections between humans and the business world. She has painted the box orange, and the image of tall skyscrapers, likely from older black and white newsprint, is filtered in blue. The use of complementary colours, in this case, orange and blue, not only work cohesively to communicate a message about men and women’s places in urban landscapes but also to visually emphasize the separation between these elements. The three businessmen are looking in a similar direction, however, the businesswoman is looking in an opposite direction. Little Betty is placed front and centre, but awkwardly riding on top of a Volkswagen Beetle. She too is facing to the right, just as the businesswoman is. The car is heading out of the city, not into it, and Betty’s horizon is counter to the direction the car is heading in. The combination of these elements conveys that there remains a difficult path for women to succeed in a man’s world.
Little Betty
Erin’s hand-drawn graphite and watercolour piece, Yin and Yang, explores an ongoing theme in her life and work: the concept of balance. Erin reminds us that perfectionism can be our own worst enemy because it prevents us from taking risks in art and life in general. We often try to control the outcome of our efforts, but in doing so, deny ourselves opportunities to learn to deal with unpredictability. This piece communicates that there can never be true balance or total control over our lives because there are so many variables at play. The broken Yin and Yang images and the juxtaposition of bricks and feathers imply disorder and imbalance; however, as Erin learned in Physics class, bricks and feathers accelerate at the same speed when they descend. It is the interplay between elements and events that create balance or imbalance in life: acknowledging unpredictability can actually help us learn to become better artists, scientists and members of the community.
Yin and Yang
During her high school years, Erin submitted work and won a number of competitions for her bookmark and mascot designs in Grade 10. This year, she designed an image that was chosen for a Military Card Cover. Erin reminds artists and art lovers that while it is great to receive recognition in art competitions, the most satisfying aspect of art-making and viewing is the process itself. She encourages beginners to sign up for art classes at school, experiment with various media and learn different techniques. No one is born an artist: artists become artists through acts of viewing and creating. Art is a great way to explore and express ideas and emotions, as well as find and produce meaning.
