I am a self-taught artist native to New England. I went west to earn a BA in Anthropology at San Diego State University. Interests such as photography, travel, and culture, as well as an overall appreciation for the natural world are all evident in my work. I tend to oscillate between mediums, using elements from my photography to catch impressions of fleeting moments with oil on canvas; or using wood, glass and stain, and upcycled pot warp in mixed media assembly and sculpture.
Over the past few years I've collected over a ton of abandoned pot warp and have explored its versatility as a durable art medium. There is a cultural and historical connection between the rope and the livelihoods of many coastal communities of Maine and beyond, which has inspired me to start the Drift Rope Project. I hope to pioneer a new frontier of sustainable art and bring awareness to the many ways this overlooked material could become an art tourism attraction.
I have been practicing art for over twenty years, mostly oil painting; but as my environment changed, so did my medium. Living along the shores of Midcoast Maine, I started to discover pieces of rope from the lobster fishing industry, pot warp, washed up on the banks of the Saint George River. The rope being colorful and vibrant compelled me to adhere these durable strands to wood panels. Since 2015 I have been exploring ways to use the rope in artistic ways resulting in the divergence of the Drift Rope Project. In 2021 I received an Artist Springboard Grant, funded in part by a grant from the Maine Arts Commission, an independent state agency supported by the National Endowment for the Arts to create a large rope panel sculpture for an outdoor installation. The grant allowed me to explore new techniques using the recycled rope to create figurative wall art, garden sculptures, and functional forms. The pot warp is collected from a local transfer station, and folks from the lobster industry directly. The project has inspired me to “create art with a mission”: recycling one of Maine’s largest industries’ waste into fine art, and highlighting how integral the rope is to the livelihoods of coastal communities.
Please visit my website for more information www.ericdarlingart.com.
