MUNTHE ART MONDAY: LOREN ERDRICH

Please introduce yourself and tell us about what you do.

My name is Loren Erdrich. I'm an American artist, living and working in NYC. I move fluidly between painting, sculpture and works on paper, centering on material exploration and themes of transformation. Figures and forms hover between the identifiable and the abstract - as if caught in the act of becoming. Meaning emerges not only through what is depicted but through how the work comes into being - through process, materiality, and feeling.

Layering and an openness to uncertainty are central to my process. In my paintings I work on muslin with fluid, water-based dyes and paints, embracing the unpredictability of the medium to blur the line between abstraction and representation. Through unconventional techniques, I combine intentional gestures with accidental marks, lending my compositions a distinctive vulnerability. Past marks are never fully erased but inform what the work becomes, allowing for moments of surprise. My ceramic sculptures also embrace this unpredictability, with the firing and glazing process mirroring the layered approach found in my paintings and drawings.

Loren is wearing our PEACH T-SHIRT and SUSSIMA OUTERWEAR.

Can you name some other female artists that inspires you and explain why they do so?

There are many but Maja Ruznic is a gorgeous painter who also works intuitively and fuses figuration and abstraction. Her use of color is amazing. Also Nickola Pottinger for her use of material. I can’t speak highly enough about both of these artists’ work. I am drawn to artists who are unapologetic about their deep sensitivity.

Loren is wearing our PEACH T-SHIRT.

What would you like people to notice in your artwork?

I hope the universe I create within my artwork offers a space where vulnerability becomes strength, where transformation is constant, and where questions are more valuable than answers.

Could you explain more about how being a woman has affected your career?

 My work has always valued emotion and intuition, realms often linked to the female experience. When I was first studying in art school, emotion and intuition were considered bad words. The general line of thinking seemed to be the bigger and more cerebral the work the better. There was the lingering belief that associating oneself with the feminine was a sure fire way to not be taken seriously. I do believe I experienced this, especially during the early part of my career. Nonetheless, because I have never been interested in making work that prioritizes thought over feeling, I have continued working in the manner I wanted to and simply waited for society to catch up. Over time, the art world has changed significantly and at present day it does place a somewhat greater value on sensitivity and vulnerability. This will no doubt continue to evolve as time goes on.

What has been the most challenging aspect of being a woman in the arts?

I think there are certain protective behaviors that many women, and those non cis male, have learned in their lives to keep themselves safe. These belief systems are often subconscious, but they drive our actions. It might be the need to keep oneself small and not draw attention, or a focus on perfectionism in order to gain approval. It has been interesting to interrogate myself and see where I am playing out story lines that do not serve me. And to see how I bring these beliefs into my studio and career.