Biography
Travis Conrad Erion paints still lifes with common objects that are both beautifully rendered and conceptually challenging. Erion’s objects, along with their titles, are often puns that comment on social or psychological situations. His objects are arranged in tabletop dramas, that at times resemble an altar or an empty theater stage. Erion’s paintings are marked by quiet humor, irony, and sense of the surreal in everyday life.
Born in Loveland, Colorado in 1971, Erion’s early interest in art was encouraged by his father, who collected Western paintings. While in high school, Erion apprenticed to the sculptor Fritz white, who he credits for “opening his eyes to the world of art”, while instructing him in anatomy and technique. During this period, Erion created a number of sculptures that were cast in bronze. The artist spent the next four years studying at the American Academy of Fine Arts in Chicago and at the Maryland Institute of Art. Returning to Colorado in 1994, Erion’s focus shifted from sculpture to painting, while studying for two years with a Western artist, Richard Schmid.
From the beginning of his involvement with art, Erion was interested in drawing and painting that represented reality. In high school he attended figure-drawing classes, and was particularly inspired by the work of Vermeer and Rembrandt. Among contemporary realists, he found a particular affinity with Claudio Bravo and Wayne Thiebaud. While his study with master artists gave him a strong grounding in craft and an appreciation for their work, Erion realized that it was important to discover his own personal style. That search took him from paintings influenced by impressionism to a devotion to working in the tradition of classical realism. In this pursuit, Erion sought to downplay the presence of brush strokes, and instead emphasized a strong sense of pictorial illusion. Particularly important in Erion’s development has been his exploration of levels of meaning beneath the surface of realism, including social critique and reflections on the vagaries of human existence.
Erion has participated in over 20 Museum exhibitions and over 50 group shows. His work Has been written in over 50 Catalogues, Periodicals, & Reviews.
A book on Erion Paintings written by Richard Vine Chief Editor of Art in America has been the latest excitement of Erions career. Also Erion was recently in the show “ I Want Candy” at the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers New York showing along with Wayne Thiebaud, Janet Fish, Ralph Goings, and Will Cotton.
