Original artwork by Ethan Edvenson

www.ethanedvenson.com
https://www.instagram.com/ethanedvenson/

Artist Statement:
I make mixed media drawings on paper and wooden panels, mainly with layers of ink, pastel, acrylic, and spray paint. They are raw and expressive, containing loose, gestural marks contrasted with defined forms and figures. Many collage in materials from everyday life such as parking tickets, plastic utensils, floss, used cds, and receipts amongst the drawn layers. I choose intense, but welcoming color choices that compliment each medium’s strengths. Many pieces break out of the standard square frame with cut, shaped edges. Plus, some extend to being on unconventional objects like a cookie sheet, wet floor sign, window, tv, and so forth to prove drawing isn’t limited to certain surfaces.

I also make digital collages using hand drawn elements and edited photos of action figures, friends, assorted items, and moments I capture. These are printed on photo paper or mounted on boards. They have similar, but distinct qualities from the physical drawings.

My works combine elements of high and low art, containing technique and complex meaning, but presented in a way that appeals to a wide range of viewers. It is honest, not positioning itself above anybody as I feel a good chunk of high art attempts to be presented.

The content of my work is intimate, personal, fun, and alive, like a conversation between close friends or reading through someone’s journal. This blend of distinct and detailed imagery sprinkled with touches of humor and storytelling give insight toward who I am, my thoughts, and the intentional choices made in each piece. I want viewers to feel that a real human being created what they’re looking at and with a genuine purpose.

This is continued through themes of individualism, championing that all aspects of a person’s life have immense value including their death. It serves to inspire beauty, hope, and human potential, countering that which is artificial, superficial, and selfish while questioning what these labels truly mean in today’s setting.

The imagery shows this through characters, machinery, and flora layered strangely, often without a dedicated landscape. These figures are often repeated and shown with different states of struggling, posture, and triumph, sometimes with undertones of conflict. However, characters are presented not as heroes or villains, but as those who represent ambition and beauty or those who stand for anti-beauty. It attempts to make any knowns into unknowns to let the viewer figure the work's meaning themselves instead of spelling it out.