Artist based in Lafayette, IN
Eli Craven, Portrait of the Photographer
Tell us about yourself, what's your background?
I was born in Idaho Falls, Idaho and grew up there during the 1980's and 90's. It was a small town - slow, conservative, and isolated. Looking back, I think I began to understand the outside world through images in magazines, television, and movies and my collections were precious to me. I was obsessed with looking at photographs. I was raised in a low-income household and magazines and movies were censored, select films and TV shows were forbidden, sexuality and death were seldom discussed. At a young age I discovered the power images hold, but it wasn't until I was 25 or so that I knew I wanted to be an artist.
Boy in a Corner. Archival Pigment Print, Brass Sheet, Walnut Frame. 15" x 8" x 5". 2024
On the Rocks no. 2. Archival Pigment Print, Found Photograph, Walnut Frames. 24" x18". 2024
“I'm in this "in-between" state, and that is when I tend to search for ideas while looking at my collection of photos and making collages. Inspiration tends to come there.”
Touching. Installation View. Blue Sky Gallery. Portland, Oregon. Dimensions Variable. August. 2024.
What are you currently working on and where did the inspiration for it come from?
I'm at the tail end of two large projects "Soap Opera" and "First-Aid." I have been working on them for the past few years. Currently, I'm trying to resolve past ideas while starting a new body of work. It feels like a transition, outside of a focused project without a deadline. I've been turning to my collections of books and images and I simply look through sources I have accumulated while playing with materials in the studio, looking at photographs, scanning negatives, and making collages. Eventually ideas come up to the surface through material experimentation. I don't have a title for the new project, but it is a continuation of my woodworks. In the past, the photograph leads the project, but recently the materials lead while the photograph is secondary.
Soap Opera No. 10. Archival Pigment Print, Walnut Panel and Artist's Frame. 24" x 16" 2023
Innovation does not only happen in the field of technology — it occurs everyday in a creative practice. What do you do for inspiration?
In the studio, I listen to music. I'm interested in exploring emotional and psychological relationships to photographs, films, and memories, so I like to create an atmosphere when I work. Lately, I've been listening to Cindy Lee, Amen Dunes, and Aldous Harding. My feelings tend to influence and find their ways into the work. As I mentioned before, I'm in this "in-between" state, and that is when I tend to search for ideas while looking at my collection of photos and making collages. Inspiration tends to come there. Outside of the studio, I watch movies and enjoy conversations with my colleagues and peers. The conversations also tend to open ideas to new work.
Studio view
Describe your practice and process. Where do ideas start for you? In the studio or being in the world?
For me, ideas begin with the acts of looking and collecting. I like to shop at second hand markets, estate sales, and flea markets. I examine lost or discarded photographs in my collection and make collages with my findings. Sometimes, I find certain images hypnotizing and I pin them up in the studio and absorb them over time until I know what to do with the print. While many of my projects start with a collage experiment or a single photograph in the studio, I do believe there is an undeniable relationship between the experiences in my childhood and my obsession with collecting and manipulating photographs. In some ways, the ideas began a long time ago and continue to develop through my ongoing relationship with photography.
Negatives on the light table in my studio.
How do you make your work, does it start with a sketch?
My work usually starts with collage or digital mockups as sketches. Then the sketches come to life through the framing and installation process. In many cases there is a connection between specific images and the materials I am using in the wood shop or studio. Its like a perfect mix of the image, available collected material, and my emotional state. For example, I started making collages on mirrors a number of years ago when I stumbled upon a stack of mirrored brass sheets at a second-hand building materials store. The gold color made its way into the work just when I was thinking of framing mirrored panels into a series of corner works and photo assemblages. I think its fate.
Collages
Many artists live by their routines, what does that look like for you?
I like to work in the studio whenever possible and I tend to work an average 9 to 5, but the work happens in phases and each day is different. No matter the phase I'm in, I start with coffee. Since my work is a combination of photography, collage, and woodworking, some days are spent in the wood shop, some with the printers, some at my computer all day. Each day looks very different if I'm working on frames or wood sculpture vs. finishing and packing for a show. My favorite days are what I'm doing right now - listening to music, scanning negatives, and making collages. Maybe my least favorite routine is sanding wood and frames. It's tedious.
"Mouth to Mouth No. 3" Archival Pigment Print, Brass Sheets, Walnut Frame. 17" x 20" x 5" 2024
Who are your biggest influences?
Some of the most influencial figures in my work were professors I worked with when I was studying art and photography at Boise State University and when I was working on my MFA at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Jon Sadler, Laurie Blakeslee, Cheryl Shurtleff, Jorge Lucero, and Linda Robbennolt all made a big impact on the artist I became, among others.
"Eye Water No. 1." Archival Pigment Print, Found Photograph, Wood Panel, Acrylic Paint, and Artist's Frames. 36" x 26." 2023
Are there books or films that are an important source of inspiration?
I have always loved the work of David Lynch. I think about him when I'm working often. I love that his work is familiar, humorous, and disturbing all at once. That is what I'm aiming for in my work- something humorous, familiar, yet unsettling, both happy and sad.
Touching (Eye Water and Towels) Installation View. Blue Sky Gallery. Portland, Oregon. Dimensions Variable. August. 2024.
What is the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
Someone once said that they would prefer to have one significant exhibition every few years or so, finished and resolved, rather than many small exhibitions. It made me strive for quality over quantity if I can.
What is the best advice you would give to other artists?
I suppose it would be to find something you love to do, so it doesn't feel like work. I love working in the studio and if I can't, I miss it.
Split Portrait. Archival Pigment Print, Brass Sheets, and Walnut Frame. 22" x 20" x 5". 2024
Stay up to date with Eli Craven
Website elicraven.com
Instagram @elicraven