Artist Statement

Working Spaces is an exploration and celebration of the places Rhode Islanders go to work. The paintings were created primarily onsite and en plein air. Erica thrives on the challenge of adapting to changes in the environment as people go about their workday. The light shifts. A plant in the greenhouse unfurls. Emergency vehicles depart and return, parking in a slightly different spot. Kegs in the brewery are moved, replaced by sacks of malt.

Erica is particularly drawn to visually complex environments—though she has come to realize that all workspaces are complex, if you examine them closely enough. She’s also discovered that while it’s the people who make the places, the places we work have a life of their own.