We recently connected with Ellen Crofts and have shared our conversation below.

Ellen, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

The most meaningful project that I’ve worked on was a series of steel and fiber sculptures that I made a few years ago. I had been re-learning how to crochet (my grandmother taught me when I was a kid) and teaching myself how to knit, and I wanted to figure out how to bring those processes into art-making. After taking some metal classes at the Contemporary Art School in Austin, I wanted to find how to use fiber and metal together in a balanced organic way, though these materials are so different. With fiber and metal, there’s a built-in opposition of feminine/masculine, soft/hard, organic/geometric, as well as the connotations of feminine/masculine, domestic/industrial, so trying to bring them together was a challenge.

In addition to being a very satisfying process, this project made me realize that there are so many mediums and materials out there to master and use in my artwork. I love the idea that there are infinite tools to use to create something and that there are YouTube videos explaining it all. Each time I learn to use a different medium or process, it really informs all of my artwork in other mediums. This experience laid the groundwork for my more recent work, in which I continue to use mixed media, in this case paint, paper and wood.

Ellen, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a visual artist based in Austin, Texas. I studied studio art at Portland State University in Portland, Oregon after completing my bachelor’s degree in Linguistics and Anthropology from Reed College. I continued painting when I relocated to New York City, taking classes at the School of Visual Arts and the Art Students League of New York. Returning to my native Texas, I have most recently been a part of the community at ACC, taking classes and working as a Gallery Assistant at The Art Galleries at ACC. I am a painter and a 3D artist, and my artwork is mostly abstract. I’m inspired by nature and landscapes, machines, buildings and everyday objects. I draw things that I see, then I make abstract drawings which recall those same real life objects and use these as the basis for my paintings and 3d artworks. I’m interested in exploring how undefined shapes and forms can elicit emotional reactions.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

All levels of government need to step up investment in arts education and put an end to the cutting of arts programs. There is extensive research suggesting that arts education benefits all students, whether they seek a career in a creative field or not. Having the opportunity to develop artistic skills and knowledge helps students improve their problem-solving abilities, learn empathy for others, and maintain a sense of personal well-being.

We need to change the perception that the arts are something frivolous and unnecessary. Especially as we recover from the pandemic, arts provide a powerful way for people to participate in communities, express their thoughts and feelings and experience something deeply meaningful to them. The arts don’t have to be something that is separate from other parts of life. We need to provide more funded opportunities for people to participate in exhibitions and art projects.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist for me is the joy and magic of the process of making things. There is nothing like just working in the studio alone and seeing what happens.

But in the last few years I’ve experienced another level of insight into the power of art through my job as a gallery assistant at The Art Galleries at Austin community College. Upon observing people visiting the art galleries, I see the real delight that overcomes the viewers, or if not delight then a state of absorbing, considering, excitement or stimulation. It’s sort of amazing that something that is so positive is not more pervasive in our culture. Directly seeing the effect that art has on people is pretty cool.

Contact Info:

• Website: ellencrofts.com
• Instagram: @ellen_crofts
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellen.crofts.3/