Steam at Harper’s Ferry is pleased to announce a solo exhibition featuring the works of Eric Holstine. Eric’s theme for this exhibit is “(EH=MC2): The Art of Electrodynamic Illumination” and will be on display from April 26 through May 25, 2014.
Eric Holstine
Eric Holstine was born and raised in Charleston, WV. He discovered at an early age that he enjoyed taking things apart and seeing how they worked. As he said in a recent interview, “Sometimes I used the parts for something else, and sometimes I just tried to make it do something different than it was intended.” His talent was acknowledged early – in the second grade. Other than basic art classes provided in junior high and high school, he hasn’t had any formal art education.
His family provides ideas and inspiration for his work. His mother is a retired school teacher, and as he said, “quite crafty.” Eric credits his mother with giving him a lot of encouragement. He spent time with his grandfather who also worked on various objects and who taught him how to fix things. With his wife’s grandmother, Eric made huge toy soldiers. He continues, “I built them and she made the clothes.” The goal was to have the soldiers march in place, but Eric didn’t have all the parts to complete the project.
Courtesy Eric Holstine with permission.
When Eric spoke about his artistic influence, he said that he always liked Steampunk style. He found inspiration in movies, books and video games. He said, “Some of my favorites were ‘Myst’ the video game, followed by the books. I also enjoy the ‘Doctor Who’ series, the ‘Time Machine,’ ‘Wild, Wild West,’ and ‘20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.’”
He works professionally in the IT field and found that he can use his computer training to enhance his art and make it unique. Prior to his IT employment, he did electrical work which he said has “merged and evolved into my style of art.”
In many ways, he is a classic tinkerer. He will look at an object and think about how it can serve the same function, but be displayed in a new way. He said, “I tend to look around for items that I can either re-purpose or breakdown and create something completely different. If I can’t find what I need, I figure out a way to make it. Sometimes it takes trial and error and most often, time. I have works waiting, unfinished until I find that missing object that just seems to complete piece.”
Eric doesn’t think that he fits into a specific artistic mold or genre. He likes to try out different things, including stained glass, painting, woodwork, metal, and polymer clay. When considering which medium he prefers, he responded, “I prefer trying to see how I can merge them together to present a more unique piece.”
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