Most mornings waking up in Chicago the temperature on my phone read -9 and the morning we took a stroll around the Ukrainian neighbourhood to visit Eric (AKA E.Lee) for a catch up it was chilly to say the least.
I first met Eric when Chris (CopyRight) had his first show in the US around 3 years ago when he [Eric] was just getting into his artistic practice. Since then he has been creating his work here in Chicago as well as across Europe. He even came to hang out with us in Bristol and worked on several street pieces with Chris in the city.
E.Lee’s work captures and plays with the idea of light and shade. With themes such as Super Heroes and beautiful gilded frames, Eric captures a visual and emotional depth I’ve not really seen in other street artists work. Currently Eric is collaborating with Hubbard St Dance studio in Chicago to create a fusion live art event.
For one night only E.Lee and the dancers will stage a sort of art heist for a live audience. Sadly this performance was the same night as our opening so we couldn’t make it but there are great videos on E.Lee’s instagram and it’s definitely worth a watch.
I love and admire Eric’s collaboration with another expressive art form such as contemporary dance. Both painting and dance can sometimes feel not very accessible but I think projects like this are a great way to engage a new audience into becoming lovers of art. I can’t wait to see what future projects they work on together.
Also Eric’s studio is incredible. I am very jealous of this huge space in such an exciting city as Chicago.
For more information on E.Lees work and future projects check out his website.