Erin Chaplin

 
"I'm interested in the cross over  between reality, fantasy and my own reality.  Still life resonates  beacuase of its relationship  with the passing of time.  Flowers and fruit and Youth can be arranged and painted- in reality they then fade and eventually die yet in the painting I strive  to capture a poignancy of the subject that lives on.  The passing of time and holding onto time comforts me.  It's realistic that nothing is too perfect or too alive."
 
In response to the challenging nature of the genre, her floral still-life  paintings are executed in a  combination of muted tones and unexpected, contrived colours.  The contrast of these tones, creates a dynamism in the work that entices and surprises the viewer.
 
Erin Chaplin's work is personal and reflective.  She draws inspiration from nature, but reaches further than the physical realms of this.  In her impasto paintings, a metaphor grows to encapsulate the delicate rawness and vulnerability of the human condition as we grapple with life as it unfolds.  Chaplin's work often explores the intensities around religious doctrine and human vulnerability.  
 
Chaplin is represented by Everard Read in Cape Town and Otomys in Australia.  For an Emerging artist her exhibition history is strong, with exhibitions at galleries in Cape Town and Johannesburg, including Imibala Gallery, the Irma Stern Museum and No End Contemporary Art Space.