Eric French
Indiana, USA, 1969
Indiana, USA, 1969
Painter, sculptor, draftsman, digital artist, photographer, and video artist. French was awarded first prize for painting at the Chase Manhattan Bank’s “Young Art” Biennial in 1993, a year before he finished his bachelor’s degree at the Puerto Rico School of Plastic Arts. He pursued his master’s degree at the Savannah College of Art and Design, where he received the Malcolm Propes Fellowship for the best portfolio. French returned to Puerto Rico in 1996 and has since taught at the Puerto Rico School of Visual Arts and the University of Puerto Rico. His forceful colors and dramatic compositions are constants in his production. Recently, he has emphasized the physicality of pigment, working in mixed media with heavy impasto work and sometimes applying paint directly from the tubes, as in the series of paintings included in his 2006 exhibition Entropy. His approach to the conception of a work is “idea, thesis, and research,” and he attempts to follow that intellectual process in the creative process that follows. He often manufactures his own pigments, and he is interested in the use of traditional and non-traditional methods and how their dynamics affect the conception of the work itself.
“For the past sixteen years, I have concentrated my efforts in searching for a better understanding of the possibilities surrounding the use of traditional and non-traditional methods and how these affect the conception of the work itself. Before I begin to work on a series, I concentrate on developing a thesis, where a lot of the primary work is researching written information on the subject. Then I try to imagine ways to get from thought to thing and try to apply the same frame of thought into the process of creating the work itself. A second phase will be concerning materials and colors, some of which I make with pigments and mixtures of pigments of my own recipes. After this I move into the selection of the materials that I will use or the ones that best suit the project, whether exploring academic methods like painting, drawing, or sculpture. I also explore more contemporary methods, such as digital imagery, photography and film”.
Eric French
1994-1996
1989-1996
1996- present
2000-2003
1994-1996
1992-1994
1990-1992
2013
2006
2004
2001
1996
2013
2008
2007
2005
2004
2003
2001
2000
1998
1995
1994
1991
1994
1993
1992
“Eric French”. Revista Arte Latinoamericano, 1 de junio de 2006, pp.26-27.
“Eric French At Galería Gandía”. Revista Arte Al Día Internacional (Miami, FL), 6 de julio de 2004, núm. 103, p. 67.
“Construyendo Una Flor de Eric French, En Galería Gandía”. Revista Art Premium (San Juan, PR), 5 de mayo de 2004, vol.1, núm 2, pp. 6 y 33.
“Eric French”. Revista Arte al Día Internacional (Miami, FL), 8 de septiembre de 2004, núm 98, p. 3.
“Eric French Invites Us To Plunge Into The Mirror And The Cliff”. Revista Southward Art Latinamerican Art
Review, 3 de agosto de 2002, vol. 3, núm. 7, pp. 106-115.
“Eric French”. Revista Arte Al Día Internacional (Miami, FL), 7 de agosto de 2001, núm 87, p. 9.