Erin Conel

Painter
Untitled, Charcoal on board, 2023
Digital Art, Drawing, Painting

I was born and raised in California and came from a science and maths background, but I have been painting regularly since 2001.

When my parents passed ten years ago, I became preoccupied with the huge archive of family snapshots I discovered in their garage. Some were so fascinating in their strangeness that I painted their subjects many times over. Eventually, the whole collection became the focus for feelings about alienation, meaning, remembrance, public and private persona, longing, and so on. Ultimately, I began combining these ‘characters’ in scenes I borrow from other parts of my life, such as horror movies from my childhood, vintage advertisements, landscapes I’ve lived in, and paintings I have loved.

More recently, I have been developing images purely from imagination and memory. I begin with an abstraction, either in charcoal or paint, where I look for imagery. I reject most of them, but when I find something interesting - a falling figure or a bull or a seated baby - I use it to develop an open narrative scene. The possibilities are wide open, but my goal is to create an artwork about humanness that is, to quote Alan de Botton, “a constant source of support and encouragement for our better selves.”

I was the proud and grateful winner of the Regional Prize for the Midlands in the ING Discerning Eye Competition in 2022, and have paintings in several private collections. I also belong to a regional group of artists that includes Mary Brittain , Deborah Catesby, Stella Downing, and Gemma Griffiths, with whom I am happy to share a venue with for WOS 2023.

Venue address
The Granary
Home Farm Lane
Great Witley
Worcester
WR6 6JJ
Directions 
Home Farm Lane has two entrances, one from the B4196 and one from the B4203. The Granary is approx 500 yards from the B4196 and 3/4 mile from B4203. Park on the gravel area in front of the house.
Telephone 
07943 866376
Venue facilities 

Opening dates and times

First weekend 
Sat 19 & Sun 20 Aug
Weekdays 
Tues 22 Aug
Second weekend 
Sat 26, Sun 27 & Mon 28 Aug
Weekday opening times 
10:30am-5.00pm
Weekend opening times 
10.30am-5.00pm