[INTERVIEW] Interview with the ERIN NEWELL BIRD

July 13, 2021

By Camila Hernandez




Lapis Lazuli, Waterprint - ink on canvas, 104 x 150 cm, 2020



Hi, Erin. Could you introduce yourself to the Art Terms Magazine readers?

 

Hi, my name is Erin Newell Bird and I’m a contemporary artist based in the Surrey Hills, UK. I’ve originated the experimental art process of “waterprinting”

 

The medium for your artworks is ‘Waterprinting.’ Could you explain about it?

 

Combing through family archives to create digital montages that reflect individual and intergenerational transformation, I then transform these images in unpredictable ways by submerging in water. Once altered, I carefully paint layers of color until the former image is completely abstracted. What remains is a vibrant form that conveys a sense of movement and freedom. 




He Turns Green in the Sun, Waterprint - ink on canvas, 120 x 150 cm, 2021


As you started with photography, how did you end up with waterprinting?

 

Waterprints are in fact a hybrid of photography and painting. And both mediums have endless possibilities. The interplay between photography and painting signals a transgression of borders between rationality and the spiritual unconscious.

 

Photography is intrinsically linked to the representational or documentary. I’m interested in transforming this by abstraction. It’s a way of recreating history, putting my own authorship on the past (old memories) to create something new, something authentic.

 

I think of this line going back and forth between photography and painting, synonymous with my attempt to relate the memories of my past with the interpretations of my viewers’ present.  I am constantly coaxing my process, experimenting,  creating ethereal, otherworldly, and unexpected results. 




Wrapped in light, Waterprint - ink on canvas, 24 x 33 cm, 2021



The unique brightly colored abstracts are interesting. What’s the most important detail that you consider working on them?

 

Making something look simple and creating a sense of movement from a still image. My process is quite involved so I need to be careful to not over complicate things. My artwork is made of many layers. A composite of family history, emotion and spiritual inquiry. We are all unique with our own voice, I’m looking for that new song

 

‘Time’ is one of the important details of your work. What does the time mean to you? How do you define the time?

 

My art practice is essentially existential. Our personal histories are amorphous, growing with time and becoming imbued with new meanings from our changing perspective - my waterprints transform the still image into something fluid, richly textured and vibrantly coloured. The act of looking at the past from the perspective of a future self transforms it, the same way the water transforms the images and imbues them with new meaning.




Erin Newell Bird in the studio


It seems like I can feel the wind when I look at the artworks. How do you express the abstract art so well?

 

Subtle changes in the transparency of color make the shift in depth seem flowing. By letting go and letting the water take control and manipulate and transform my imagery creates this effect.




in the Belly of the Whale, Waterprint - ink on canvas, 2014


Water is such an important factor in your artwork. What fascinated you to work on the conception of life imagined by water?

 

I relate water to the biblical and symbolic sense. In the same way that Christians believe a water baptism creates a new person in Christ. My imagery is transformed after submersion in water into something new. If we look further into Christianity we’ll discover that the only people who previously ever made a water print were Jesus (the foundation of creation) and Peter (the apostalic figure, the earliest father of the church). There’s so many layers of meaning to the process of a waterprint. I even think of the birthing waters, that each of us enters the world making a first waterprint from our mother’s womb.




Mount of transfiguration, Waterprint - ink on canvas, 24 x 24 cm


Where do you get inspirations from?

 

Personal experience and existential curiosity. I think the act of looking at my past (from God’s eye view) and articulating my own experience is my way of sharing - the act of seeing from a different perspective imbues my work with new meanings, meanings I can’t control - in the same way I can’t control what the water does to my art - I’m providing a space for people to look and read their own lives into my work - it creates a community of people bound by the look, sharing in my art. The act of seeing is so intimate - “in spirit, in truth” - the way in which people observe, gives new life to my work - Water is regenerative and life-giving.




At evening, when the sun had set, Waterprint - ink on canvas, 33 x 48 cm, 2020


Do you have a muse that inspires you while being an artist?

 

Psalm 77 speaks of God’s goodness and says “Your steps formed a highway through the seas with footprints on a pathway no one even knew was there.”

 

You were raised in the United States, but currently living in UK. What’s the biggest difference between two countries as an artist?

 

From my experience as an art student in the US it was a much more encouraging/ nurturing experience compared to studying in the UK where I found the approach was to knock me down and then build me back up. Both approaches are highly effective! However, I encourage my artist community as an American and aim to be positive and supportive. If I see something good I don’t withhold the compliment.






12.6K followers are fascinated by your artworks. What do you think about the online community and the art field?

 

Instagram has been a very positive place for me to share my work. I reciprocate that by also being positive and encouraging. I’m blessed to have an audience to engage with and it has been a fantastic platform for artistic opportunities: exhibitions, sales, interviews, like this one :)

 

How was the life as an artist during the COVID-19 pandemic?

 

The lockdown intensified my art practice. I’m lucky to have space in my home to make art work. I start a new work at a point of introspection, this time was amplified, always wondering about my place in the world




A new song, Waterprint - ink on canvas, 62.5 x 91.4 cm, 2020 


What do you think about the power of art?

 

Our eyes are powerful, we can understand things and communicate with people who may not have had the same experience as us or even speak the same language, yet they can still interpret and connect

 

Is there a new material, genre, or expression technique you want to try?

 

It’s very important for me to experiment and develop as an artist. I’m not drawn to material, I’m drawn to a process, so for me it is to further explore my process and see how I can push it. I’m always trying new things, it keeps me engaged as an artist and interested in what I’m doing





Erin Newell Bird in the studio 


Is there an artistic goal that you would ultimately reach through your work?

 

I’d love to be in a treasured art collection and my work passed down and enjoyed for generations.

 

Thank you so much for taking the time for the interview. Would you like to say something to the readers of Art Terms Magazine?

 

Sing a new song




 

 


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