"Nature and the Arts have the power to heal our minds and reach our souls.”
In my still life paintings I use various common, everyday objects to provide an interesting visual variety; large, small, wide, narrow, light, dark etc. Sometimes a variety of colors or color combinations provide the subject matter. The objects are used abstractly to break up the canvas in an interesting way rather than for the narrative they might produce. I try to keep my objects very simple so they don’t demand a lot of attention on their own. Instead, the objects are used as vehicles to show light, shadow, values, and color. I consider the negative space around objects to be as important as the objects themselves.
The creative part of my process is setting up my still lives which involves a lot of moving and changing, including my light source, until I have achieved my goal of creating interest. This is a long answer to get to the bottom line which is the inspiration developed in the process of setting up the still-life. I have to look for exciting or interesting visual combinations since they don’t just happen. (NHPCC artist interview)
Eileen Frailey Eder, a Connecticut artist, is a representational painter who works almost exclusively from life. Her harmonious paintings show her affection for light and shadow as well as color and shapes both in nature and in simple objects. Eileen often drew and painted throughout her teenage and early adult years. After raising a family she attended the New York Academy of Art, graduating with an MFA degree in 1998. Following grad school, Eileen began her full time professional career painting and teaching, being grateful to enjoy the challenge, joy, and fulfillment of painting ever since.