What is the real work of an artist? There is artwork and there is the work it requires. While attention is given to finished products and final outcomes, the artist’s creative process is often intentionally obscured from view. As an artist and curator, Erin Elder has been producing artworks for over 20 years and in her support of others, she is deeply familiar with the real lives of artists and their myriad creative processes. In this illustrated talk, Erin will reveal the often hidden activities, the mixed emotions, the inner stoking, the necessary failures, and what it takes to maintain a connection with one’s muse. Against the backdrop of runaway climate collapse and ongoing culture wars, she will share the challenges, absurdities, and triumphs met in constantly creating the conditions for discovery and expression. With a fascination for the messier, weirder, and largely unpredictable aspects of art making, this tell-all presentation aims to demystify the creative process by showing the work beside the work.

Thursday, May 12, 5:00 pm
This is a hybrid event. Attend in person at the Cornerstone Arts Center Film Screening Room or join us on Zoom.

Erin Elder is an artist, writer, and curator guided by interests in land use, experimental collaboration, and non-traditional modes of expression. Her research-driven projects take highly participatory forms, working with a broad definition of art to bring audiences into a direct experience of particular places. Erin also operates Gibbous, a consulting service that supports committed artists at pivotal moments in their careers. She is currently in residence with the Colorado College Department of Creativity & Innovation, where she is developing a project about Monument Creek.