Erico Ortiz: September 2014

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

I'm keeping watch...

Keeping Watch Over Pueblo (acrylic on wood, 17x17") Sep 2014

I love the look of paint on wood! I enjoy the ability to blend and texturize the piece. I created a piece called "Pueblo" a few years ago, which hangs in a home in Arizona...and I wanted to recreate that piece when I saw this panel of 17x17" wood. I'm so pleased with how it turned out. Here's "Keeping Watch Over Pueblo." -Erico

Monday, September 1, 2014

It was time....

"The Road is Long..." (acrylic on wood, 17x17") Sep 1, 2014

I've understood writers block. I've understood stagnancy in music and theatre. I've never quite understood why it's so difficult to get something on canvas when I know that I really want to do just that. The past couple of weeks have been riddled with frustration and bitterness and, sad to say, a sense of doom. Maybe it's just my body telling me that summer is ending and that the leaves are about to fall. Maybe it's more than that. But it shouldn't stop me from painting; in fact, it should inspire me to paint more... in order to get out those aggressions. I'm open. I'm trying. Paths are strewn with blockage and the leaves still fall. Let's make it a colorful one. -Erico

Biographical Note

Erico Ortiz was born in Cayey, Puerto Rico in 1955. He earned his undergraduate degree at Marquette University (Spanish Education) and a Masters Degree from UW-Milwaukee (Administrative Leadership). Erico taught Spanish for ten years and then became a school administrator, having worked at several Milwaukee Public Schools until retiring in 2011. He has worked with several community theatre companies, both on stage and behind the scenes, something he still enjoys today. He plays guitar and, until June 2019, could be found Sunday mornings directing the Spanish choir at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Parish in Milwaukee. In 2014, he opened Inspiration Studios, a small art gallery and performance venue in downtown West Allis that he owns and manages. Erico's life is all about the arts!

Artist's Statement

In 1998, a study leave immersed me in art education courses at UW-Milwaukee. While this was not the traditional studio coursework that a budding artist would undertake, I learned the value of critical thinking and problem-solving as they relate to educating students in the arts. After years of rather humble artistic endeavors, my retirement from the Milwaukee Public Schools in 2011 provided the opportunity I needed to explore visual arts as never before. I began to paint! I realized that inspiration was all around me—in people and places, sights and sounds, music and movies.

As part of my creative process, I determine the idea for a project. Then the first challenge is the mixing and blending of colors to achieve a certain effect on a canvas, a challenge I truly enjoy. Sometimes that selection process takes on a life of its own... and I'm forced to abandon my initial intention to give way to a new creative thought. Still honing skills and techniques, I am often thrilled (and sometimes pleasantly surprised!) by the resulting color compositions and the overall product.

What began as a hobby has become a way of viewing the world and expressing my mind’s eye on canvas. If you choose to view these pages, you will see that I am still finding my way.

Erico Ortiz

Gallery Exhibits