About

 

About Erika Rier

Erika Rier is a self-taught interdisciplinary artist creating paintings, ceramics, and art zines in a style she calls folk surrealism. Writing was her first love and she still secretly writes stories. Having lived in Maine, Vermont, Connecticut, NYC, Arizona, and Washington state; Erika now resides in Portland, OR.  She also has one of each of the following: a husband, a daughter, a fluffy cat, and a little dog.

 
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Artist Statement

I consider myself a storyteller whose stories are told through visual art. Over the course of my career in art, I have been building up an ever evolving narrative arc, each work being  the next page in a wordless story.  I create pieces that draw viewers in with their bright colors and delicate line work but as one delves deeper into the work, they find themselves immersed in a complex narrative. Whether I’m creating a mixed media painting or a simple ceramic dish, I fill each piece with stories for the viewer to uncover. Something as simple as the a sideways glance on a face in a ceramic ring dish, can open up stories.

My work is particularly focused on telling feminine stories, as well as changing our expectations of the the way feminine people are depicted as subjects within art. I think it is important for viewers to see complex feminine stories portrayed. I’m particularly interested in creating art which depicts feminine people engaged actively in their world rather than as passive subjects shaped by the male gaze.

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Exhibitions 

  • 2023 Cat Ladies, 2-person exhibit w/Ryoko Rio at Sidestreet Arts

  • 2023 Extravagant Creatures, Paragon Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2022 Guest Artist, Salem on the Edge Gallery, Salem, OR

  • 2022 Day by Day, 3 person exhibit, Maude Kerns Gallery, Eugene, OR

  • 2022 Dream House, solo exhibit, Lolopass Gallery, Portland, OR (funded by RACC)

  • 2021 Walking Mountains, solo exhibit, 1122 Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2021 During or Before, Cambium Gallery, Astoria, OR

  • 2021 Beyond the Construct, group show, The Dalles Center for the Arts, OR

  • 2021 Singular Mythologies, 2-woman exhibit, The Arts Center, Corvallis, OR

  • 2020 The Work Around, group exhibit, various sites around Portland, Oregon, my installation was at Morning Ceramics

  • 2020 A Fork in the Road, solo exhibit, Lindgren Gallery at George Fox University, Newberg, OR

  • 2019 Pageant, solo exhibit, Wolff Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2019 From Grandmother’s House, solo exhibit, Pendleton Center for the Arts, OR

  • 2019 From the Forests, From the Furrows, From the Field, group exhibit, Ford Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2019 Everyone Together, group exhibit, One Grand Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2019 On This Journey, solo exhibit, Collapse Gallery, Wenatchee, WA

  • 2019 Flaunt Your Frida, group exhibit, Remedy Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2018 Holiday Miniature Art Show, group exhibit, Ghost Gallery Seattle, WA

  • 2018 Transform, Siren Fest Group Art Show, Portland, OR

  • 2018 Daily Conversations, group show,Columbia Center for the Arts,HoodRiver, OR

  • 2018 Stolen Power, solo exhibit, A Space Gallery, Seattle, WA

  • 2018 Secret Sauce, group exhibit, Nucleus Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2018  Color Meditations, solo exhibit, Bula Kava, Portland, OR

  • 2018 Origin Story, solo exhibit, Quality Bar, Portland, OR

  • 2017  COCA Seattle 24-hour Art Marathon & Auction, Seattle, WA

  • 2017 Goddesses & Villains, solo exhibit Multnomah Art Center Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2017 From Conception to Copier, group Exhibit, Stumptown Belmont, Portland OR

  • 2017 Seattle Erotic Art Festival, Seattle, WA

  • 2017  Commissioner’s Print Exhibit, Portland City Hall, Portland, OR

  • 2016  Miniature Art Extravaganza, Group Exhibit, Ghost Gallery, Seattle, WA

  • 2016  COCA Seattle 24-hour Art Marathon & Auction, Seattle, WA

  • 2016 99 Problems But a Print Ain’t One, Group Exhibit, The Southern, Charleston, SC

  • 2016 The Ballpoint Pen Art Show, Group Exhibit, Pony Club Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2016  Art Speaks Out, Group Exhibit, Mel’s Frame Shop & Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2016  Hearth, Group Exhibit, Confluence Gallery, Twisp, WA

  • 2016  The Art of Tarot, Group Exhibit, Ghost Gallery, Seattle, WA

  • 2016 Postal Art Show, The Pigeons Studio & Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2016  Wearable Art Show, Columbia Center for the Arts, Hood River, OR

  • 2016 Object:Intention, Group Show, The Pigeons Studio and Gallery, Portland, OR

  • 2016 Oceans, Exhibit & Group Show, OMSI, Portland, OR

  • 2015 Drawn Together: Contemporary Drawing in the PNW, Nightingale Gallery, La Grande, OR

  • 2015 20/20 Vision, Group Show, Burien Arts Center, Burien, WA

  • 2015 Inner Turmoil: Solo Exhibit, Fireplace Gallery at Mount Hood Community College, Gresham, OR

  • 2015  Monster Drawing Rally, Portland Art Museum, Portland, OR

  • 2015 Patches & Stitches, group exhibit, Light Grey Art Lab, Minneapolis, MN

  • 2015  Assemblies, solo exhibit, Blendily, Portland, OR

  • 2015 The Curious Worlds, 3 woman show, Phinney Center Gallery, Seattle, WA

  • 2015 Guts Group Exhibit, Light Grey Art Lab, Minneapolis, MN

  • 2015 The Bell Jar, Group Exhibit, Ghost Gallery, Seattle, WA

  • 2015 Artist Trust 2015 Benefit Auction, Seattle, WA

  • 2015 Mythic Ephemera, Public Art Installation, Spaceworks Tacoma, Tacoma, WA

  • 2015 Solo Exhibit, Magnolia United Church of Christ, Seattle, WA

  • 2014 Annual Miniature Art Extravaganza group show, Ghost Gallery, WA

  • 2014 “In the Land of Snow & Indigo” group show, Confluence Gallery, Twisp, WA

  • 2014 Bountiful Group Show at the Ida Culver House Broadview, Seattle, WA

  • 2014 Sheltered, group show, Davis Art Center, Davis, CA

  • 2014 “Stacks” Group Show, Light Grey Art Lab, Minneapolis, MN

  • 2014 Work + Play Group Show, Land PDX in collaboration with ICON8, Portland, OR

  • 2014 “Summer Moon” Group Show at Twilight Gallery with Ghost Gallery, Seattle, WA

  • 2014 “The Scribble Project” Group Show, City Library in Melbourne, Australia

  • 2014 Solo Exhibit, University Friends Meeting, Seattle, WA

  • 2013 Solo Exhibit, Drala, Seattle, WA

  • 2013  Solo Exhibit, Snapdragon, Vashon Island, WA

  • 2013 “Daydreams & Nightdreams: Solo Show”, Mary Boze Gallery at TUUC, Tacoma, WA

  • 2013  “Dream States”, Solo Exhibit at SU Gallery at Southern Oregon University, Ashland, OR

Publications

  • In Her House, self-published art/object zine, 2021

  • The Portland Mercury, cover & interior illustrations, Vol. 20 Issue 20, 2020

  • Bust Magazine, interior illustration, Issue 119, 2019

  • Willamette Week, cover illustration, Volume 45/51, 2019

  • Hey Lady, Issue #6, 2016

  • Stolen (drawings), Issue #5, 2016

  • RITUS, Little Paper Press, San Francisco, CA 2016

  • UPPERCASE Issue 28 (illustration), 2016

  • Amelia’s Colourful Colouring Companion (illustration) , by Amelia Gregory, 2015

  • Stolen (drawings), Issue #4, 2015

  • Stolen Issue #3 (drawings), 2015

Grants, Awards, & Residencies

  • 2021 Learn Make Build Grant, Regional Arts & Culture Council, Portland, OR

  • 2019  Regional Arts & Culture Project Grant, Portland, OR