Erica Baptiste
Trumpeter, Chalk pastel on paper
What are your earliest memories of being artistic? As a young girl I would draw the animals in my favorite books and movies. I specifically remember drawing the Lion King characters over and over again. I was fascinated by wild animals and some of my earliest drawings featured lions, gorillas and polar bears.
When did art become a pursuit? Art became a pursuit when I started taking it more seriously in college. I realized that I found true value in art making and that I felt deeply connected to my identity as an artist.
Are you self-taught or formally educated in visual art? It’s been a mix of self-teaching and formal education. I did take art lessons in high school and college but the most valuable lessons I have learned have come through hours of exploration and trial and error testing.
How did you first become involved with CAA? I heard about CAA through artist friends who were members of this community and recommended that I join.
In what other ways are you involved in the local art community? I am an active artist in my neighborhood of Jamaica Plain and show my work throughout the Greater Boston Area. I am a member of Cambridge Art Association, Jamaica Plain Artists Association and Arts Worcester. I also collaborate with local artists and musicians on a variety of projects.
Intuition, Chalk pastel on paper
What role do you think the artist plays in society? Artists play a multitude of roles within society. They generate beauty, inspire imaginativeness, contextualize and record, preserve culture, offer new perspectives and cultivate community.
What medium do you currently work in and how did you choose this medium? I currently bounce back and forth between chalk pastel, pencil, watercolor and oil painting.
What is your creative process? Where are you finding ideas for your art these days? I find inspiration all around me but I intentionally seek inspiration from three main sources. The first is in nature. I live in a very green neighborhood and I often walk around collecting materials that I find to be unusually beautiful. This can be anything from an oddly shaped leaf or a stick with an intricate pattern or texture. Anything with a unique form can spark my imagination and make me visualize how the shape could be abstracted and morphed into something new.
My second source of inspiration comes from my community and from artists that came before me. Sharing knowledge and experiences with other artists always leaves me feeling renewed and alive.
My third source of inspiration comes from studying the bone structure and movements of animals. If you look closely at a butterfly’s wings you will notice that the structure is almost identical to that of a flower petal. These parallels and formal similarities are all around us and they remind me of the infinite ways that we are all interconnected.
How do you choose your subject matter? Is there a reoccurring theme that carries throughout your work? Some reoccurring themes present in my work are that of nature, regeneration, human relationships and the cycle of life and death.
Regeneration, Pencil on paper
In your opinion, what’s your best/favorite piece you’ve made? My favorite piece is usually my most recent. I just completed a drawing titled Regeneration so that is my current favorite for the time being.
What is one of your artistic goals? One of my highest artistic goals is to make my work profitable and thus sustainable. Making art is fundamental to my happiness and I am determined to create for the rest of my life.
What’s your favorite place to see art? My favorite place to see art is within someone’s home. It reminds me that others find value in original work and in supporting living artists.
What living artists are you inspired by? So many! Winnie Truong, Alice Lin, Christina Mrozik, Shealeen Louise and Emily Jeffords to name a few.
Do you own any art by other artists? Yes I have even been fortunate enough to trade work with a few of my favorite artists in my community.
See more Erica!
Website: ericabaptisteart.com
Instagram: eb_russo_art
Facebook: ericabaptisteart