My art often starts with an emotional reaction to something I see, hear, or imagine. Almost immediately, I’m building a creative vision around it.
As I work with that vision. the external connects with what’s internal.
It might be a passion.
It might be whimsy.
It might be something else altogether, but it’s rooted in my emotional response to something around me.
I work in a variety of media.
Here are some examples.
DRAWINGS
Though I often joke that “they just come out of the pen,” they’re usually triggered by a deep need for self-expression. The finished work may have no obvious connection with what sparked it.
For example, this is from my Pandorica series (ref: Dr. Who). It’s pen and ink on paper, and about 10″ x 10″.
PAINTINGS
My paintings vary widely, depending upon my mood and the purpose of the painting. When the light is “just so” or a detail fascinates me within a larger context, I aim to convey the beauty of the moment in a landscape.
This is one of my sunset sketches, capturing the light from our living room window in New Hampshire. It’s on an 8″ x 10″ canvas board. (Click on the image to learn more about it.)
Other paintings include extensions of my pen-and-ink sketches and drawings. For example, here’s one painting based on my “Pandorica” series of drawings.
Now and then, I’ll create an illustrative work, outside my usual style. This 36″ x 36″ painting was a gift for my nephew’s 2017 wedding in Huntsville, Alabama. My intent was to celebrate the joyous essence of the moment.
MIXED-MEDIA COLLAGES
My collages have evolved from my love of personal art journaling.
Most of them—usually crafted with torn paper—find resonance in a single image, word, phrase, or texture. That’s the starting point, and I typically focus on the rhythm of the elements, exploring the nuances of deep expression.
This one started with the word “Resilient.” It’s an 8.5″ x 11″ torn paper collage, completed in January 2021.
INSPIRATIONS
I’m inspired by nature but also by music, literature, architecture, and history.
For me, art is an experience, whether my medium is oil paint, acrylics, torn paper, fabric, or photography.
Once the work begins, I’m immersed in the creative experience.
Luminescence is a key element in much of my fine artwork. I think it’s why I’m drawn to paint and photograph sunrises and sunsets, and capture glimmers of light and color in foggy landscapes.
The highest compliment is when someone looks at my work, inhales in surprise, and then whispers, “Wow.”
For me, real art reveals who we are in the moment. It should be unabashed and authentic.
Art is where I lose all sense of time and revel in the beauty and whimsy of creativity.
BIO
I’m a third-generation artist.
My maternal grandfather was Napoleon Mark Bernier (1894 – 1959), inventor and founder of California Paints, California Stucco, California Product Corp. and responsible for crafting many of the features in innovative sites such as Gropius House. In the late 1950s, he was among the earliest developers of acrylic paints for artists, then known as New Masters paints. He remains a fond memory.
My father was calligrapher, photographer, and political activist William B. Morey, Jr. (1912 – 1999).
My mother was Muriel Joan Bernier (1919 – 2010), a member of Massachusetts College of Art’s Class of 1940, and a Disney illustrator. She raised my brother and me unconventionally, with weekly visits to art museums and galleries. On a gloomy day, Mum’s frequent default was, “Let’s go to the deCordova!”
As a teen, I studied with the late Roger Montgomery Mulford. His encouragement, plus the haven of my high school’s Shakespeare Club, helped me rise above some daunting challenges.
Those influences continue to inspire me.
PROJECTS
Since age 14, I’ve worked as a freelance artist, designing everything from public library decor to the earliest Star Trek convention brochures.
As “Aisling D’Art,” I’m one of the founders of today’s art journaling movement, and I was among the very earliest bloggers in the Open Pages days. For fun, I still publish zines, coloring books, and journaling ephemera under that pen name.
I’ve designed book covers and illustrations for publishers including Chilton, Schiffer, Sterling, New Forest, and Dorling Kindersley.
My quilts, wall hangings, and figures have been featured at these galleries and shops:
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Today, I create fine art in my own name (eibhlin), while continuing to participate in art journaling and mixed-media art communities.
I aspire to…
- be authentic in every moment
- illuminate the past for inspiration
- live a life of transcendent elegance and simplicity
- savor the ever-changing magnificence of nature and its connection with spirituality, and
- share a reverence for the abundant beauty in everyday life.
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
I was a juried member of EBSQ Plus, from its earliest days. My other memberships have included: York Art Association (ME), Concord Art Association (MA), International Plein Air Painters, and NH Plein Air.
MY NAME
My given name is spelled “Eibhlin” in the Irish tradition. I often use the simpler spelling, “Eileen.” In English, both names are pronounced the same.