Curator: Isabella Webb
Based on interviews with E. Dale Erickson, Ms. Isabella Webb has curated this collection. Webb is a passionate curator with an eye for and deep appreciation for fine art, she is focusing on the legacy of E. Dale Erickson, showcasing his exceptional oil paintings. Isabella's interviews brings renewed attention to Erickson’s mastery, highlighting his dynamic use of color and texture, while ensuring his contributions to contemporary art continue to resonate with modern audiences. Through her curatorial work, she offers a fresh perspective on Erickson’s timeless creations, inviting both collectors and art enthusiasts to rediscover their beauty.
“Lorraine and Samba” – This painting is a special portrait of Lorraine and our dog Samba. Lorraine and l have been together since 2011. Samba passed away a couple of years ago just after I finished this painting. I say that it’s a special painting because we both met each other through Samba. I was dog sitting for a friend of mine who was friends with Lorraine, so the dog brought us together in an indirect way. In the painting I was attracted to the way the white blouse and Lorraine’s arms hold the shape of the dog in place. Samba is not very happy in the painting. If you know anything about dogs, you know that when their ears are back against their head, they are uncomfortable. My main influence in doing the painting is from a painting that l saw in the Milwaukee Museum of Art by Dutch artist Kees Van Dogen, a 20-century artist who lived in Paris with Picasso. It’s of a woman holding a cat and is much more abstract than my painting of Lorraine and Samba although l believe that the feelings are comparable in both paintings. Although our days with Samba are over, our love for him remains in our hearts and this painting.
— Oil on Canvas, 41” x 40, 1994
“Title” – This painting, in vintage shades of grey and brown, depicts a young Dale fishing with his grandfather. Unlike his other works, which almost always depict subjects from his personal photography, Dale chose this particular photo, taken in 1947, to represent memories of his grandfather and because of the composition’s prominent vertical emphasis. One of only a handful of paintings which reject naturalistic colour, Dale creates a sophisticated illusion of depth through a limited colour palette, utilising tonal variations to draw his viewers into the pictorial space. The viewers eyes are instantly drawn to the oversaturated face of a young Dale, who recalls that he didn’t much enjoy the bug-filled forest and shrubbery that came with the task of trout fishing, but cherished time spent with his Grandfather. Behind the two figures lies a backdrop of a hazy forest, further evoking a sense of receding space. A snapshot of a single moment, leads to myriad of memories twisted between tree trunks.
— Oil on Canvas, 41” x 40, 1994
“Title” – In my opinion this is one of Dale’s most beautiful and subjective works. Although it was painted without a distinct narrative in mind, it’s compositional harmony, moody blue palette, and soft line are perfectly poetic and open to a variety of interpretation. When interviewing Dale about this piece, he references the great Mattisse, “first I make a painting, then I paint a nude”. On a sunny day in San Francisco, rain from the previous night allows for a more experimental feel to the nude. Despite being a realist painting, the ripples of water have an almost impressionistic appearance. The eye is transported about the canvas via the unpredictable loops and swirls of reflected light. Only then are we brought to the nude; a twisted form within the neat horizontal space which breaks up the regimental division of each rectangle.
— Oil on Canvas, 41” x 40, 1994
“Title” – Dale’s use of composition and use of line allow for an interplay between air and weight; the defined edge of the subjects feet carry a sense of mass, which seems to evaporate as your eye moves down the cavas. The viewer, in the same fashion as the controposto figure, peers down at the ground to be met with a reflection of vast blue sky, free to simply admire visually, personally reflect, or draw a deeper conclusion.
— Oil on Canvas, 41” x 40, 1994