Elsa Campbell
Drifting Coast to Coast, ink, acrylic, artist crayon, printmaking, and collage on paper
What are your earliest memories of being artistic? My earliest memory is a visual image of lying in my bed at night and watching the light from car headlights moving up the wall of my bedroom, across the ceiling, and down the other side – I was 4.
When did art become a pursuit? I loved art as a child, but was shamed in art class in school and became a hidden artist as a teen. I was sent a camera by a distant relative when I was 18 and started photographing and applied to art school the next year.
Are you self-taught or formally educated in visual art? I think I am both. I attended art school to study photography and have taken lots of workshops and classes over the years, but am also self-educated in a lot of the mediums I like to work in now.
In what other ways are you involved in the local art community? I am a founding member of the East Boston Artist Group which started about 20 years ago. I participate in East Boston Open Studios which is the neighborhood I live in.
What role do you think the artist plays in society? Artists light the way.
Continental Echo, ink, acrylic, artist crayon, and collage on paper
What medium do you currently work in and how did you choose this medium? Currently I work mainly in drawing and mixed media works on paper. I was trained in traditional black & white photography, then expanded into collage and artists books. My current work uses a combination of drawing, collage and printmaking.
What is your creative process? Where are you finding ideas for your art these days? My creative process is: “Don’t think – MAKE” (to quote Dean Nimmer). Ideas come from living in the world.
How do you choose your subject matter? Is there a reoccurring theme that carries throughout your work? My subject matter chooses me – it is the desire for making sense of the world I find myself in.
In your opinion, what’s your best/favorite piece you’ve made? It is a collage/drawing/rubbing full of color and imagery that is meaningful to me.
Stacked Due North, ink, acrylic, artist crayon, and collage on paper
What is one of your artistic goals? To be seen.
What’s your favorite place to see art? A museum empty of other people
What living artists are you inspired by? Doris Salcedo, Nancy Azara, Karine Leger, Sandi Haber Fifield, Rirkrit Tiravanija
Do you own any art by other artists? Yes, I own lots of art. I love to trade art with other artists and I also buy at least one piece a year.
Do you have any shows coming up? Nothing scheduled right now
See More Elsa!
Website: www.elsacampbell.com
Instagram: ecampbellfineart