inspiration

Loving & Letting Go

Art For Sale, Art Journal, creativity, Exhibition, Gallery, inspiration, Installation, process, Residency, Story

I am overjoyed with how the Loving & Letting Go exhibit came together. In the next few posts, I will be reflecting on different aspects of my solo show. Today’s post focuses on the exhibit itself. I absolutely love this view from the outside.

Huge thanks to Mark Woods and Vassilisa Kapila for these beautiful photos.

 

This may be my favorite wall in the show. There’s something about the way these pieces hang together (maybe it’s the blues) that I find so pleasing.

 

These works in the front of the gallery are what most likely come to mind when people think of one of my paintings ~ lots of depth with layered surfaces that are textured, weathered and worn. In these pieces, there’s a tension between opposing forces seeking resolution (motion/stillness, geometric/atmospheric, light/dark, etc) ~ a fitting match for show’s theme of loving and letting go.

 

 

 

I made the large paper piece on the left during my 2022 Chateau Orquevaux artist residency in France. After my morning writing, I headed into my studio and painted some quick works on paper just to loosen up.  At the end of our month, we were invited to exhibit the work we’d created…and I didn’t want to show 30 pieces of paper. So I decided to make a painting out of paper. This is what I came up with.

The 3 smaller pieces on the right are what my quick works on paper evolved into ~ these pages have taken on a life of their own, and are currently exhibiting in my solo show (“Little & Often”) in Chicago.

 

The beauty of this space is that it offered up different rooms that allowed me to showcase various sides of my creative practice. This little nook held more standalone pieces that were still pivotal in my journey.

 

Heading down the hall, I love this peekaboo view into this room. I enjoyed witnessing people’s responses as they stumbled upon this unexpected installation. The walls of the room are lined with 8 years of original journal pages.

Continue reading →

Artist Talk

artist talk, creativity, Gallery, inspiration, Installation, process, Speaking, Story

“Following the Narrative Throughline”
Loving & Letting Go (solo show)
July 26, 2025 at 3pm

It was a pleasure to sit down with gallerist Devon Dunham to discuss the narrative thread that weaves through the art, film, and writing in my solo show, Loving & Letting Go.

Gallerist Otto Chan was kind enough to livestream the talk, so people were able to attend both online and in person. What a gift to spend time with you reflecting on the themes and stories that continue to fuel my work.

Enjoy!

00:43 Talk begins

01:08 Devon – intro & story about finding and reaching out to Eli.

04:03 Eli – stretching herself creatively for this show and reflects on the serendipity that made the hut installation possible.

08:20 Eli – her daily writing practice and the installation of her journal pages.

10:43 Devon & Eli – externalizing the internal world, and how the exhibit moves from the hut to the journal pages to the paintings.

14:30 Eli – tracing her creative journey back to the film, and discussing the inspiration behind making the film (the search for identity and belonging.)

17:54 Eli – film screening during the exhibit highlighted how her art picked up where the film left off.

18:55 Eli – this body of work exploring the theme of “Loving & Letting Go” began during her 2022 Chateau Orquevaux residency in France. This theme continues to resonate on multiple levels.

22:22 Devon & Eli – Loving and Letting Go as an act of self-exploration ~ a body of work to more deeply understand “Who Am I?”

24:18 Eli – her daughter’s response to the show.

25:25 Devon – shares visitors’ profoundly personal responses to the Chagga hut and his own reflection on Eli’s body of work.

29:24 [Audience question] Eli & Devon – share their thoughts on the painting behind them ~ “The Offering.”

33:24 [Audience question] Eli – shares creative process, how her work continues to surprise her, and the conversations she has with her work as it’s developing.

35:34 [Walk up the the front.]

36:08 Eli – the paintings in the front gallery (vs the back) and how they invite you to move in closer.

38:57 [Audience question] Eli – including writing in her work.

41:18 [Devon question] Eli – intention behind incorporating text and graphic imagery in her work.

45:06 Devon – asks audience member pick a favorite piece and share how it makes them feel.

47:30 Eli – difference between encaustic and cold wax medium, and how/why she works with oil & cold wax.

50:35 Eli – how she knows when a piece is done.

54:25 One final audience comment/question…

The Art of Daily Practice – Opening Reception

Art For Sale, Art Journal, CLUSTER, collaboration, creativity, Exhibition, Gallery, inspiration, Installation, process

Lynann Politte at Vashon Center for the Arts has been a joy to collaborate with on my solo show ~ The Art of Daily Practice. My work this past year has been fueled by a vision of what an exhibit of my journal pages could look like. And now, seeing how it all came together, I have to say reality far exceeded my dream!

So much creative collaboration goes into putting on a “solo” show. Many thanks to Lucky Rabbet Framing for doing such a mega job floating & framing 28 journal pages. Thanks also to Lynann and her mentor Paul Martinez who had their work cut out for them with this installation. The placement of every piece has been carefully considered…and the resulting exhibit looks spectacular!!

Coming up
Artist Talk: The Art of Daily Practice
Vashon Center for the Arts
Saturday, Feb. 17 at 2pm.

Thank you to all who came to the opening!! It was lovely to meet so many people new to my art, and to hear their reflections and see the work through their eyes. I was delighted to see old friends from all chapters of my adult life. And Vashon is home to members of my creative team from my film, A Lot Like You. I spent a lot of time on this island in the 8 years it took to make the film, and it was lovely to reunite with Eric Frith (editor), Pete Droge (composer), Elaine Summers (music supervisor) and Jeff Hoyt (voice over coach).

And finally, my gratitude to event photographer Wade Yip, as well as June Sekiguchi, Eric Frith and VCA gallery, for sharing their reception photos. Feel free to click on any image below and scroll through. Enjoy!

Vashon Center for the Arts (VCA)
#Hashtag (is hidden in the painting.)
Artist Statement
Install shot
Grid of journal pages
Install shot
w/Lynann Politte, VCA Gallery Manager (June Sekiguchi)
w/CLUSTER members Theresa Neinas & June Sekiguchi. (We’re heading to Stockholm in April for a group show!) Photo courtesy of June Sekiguchi
Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
w/Eric Frith, my film editor. Photo courtesy of Eric Frith.
Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
Talking w/Eric, Jeff & Cindy Hoyt. Jeff was my narration coach for my film. Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
Photo courtesy of Wade Yip
Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
w/Pete Droge, my film composer. Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
Talking art & making plans with Ann Leda Shapiro.Photo courtesy of VCA Gallery
Artist & her Grid. Photo courtesy of Wade Yip

 

Transforming Trauma Into Art

Activism, creativity, family, Film, inspiration, Narrative, podcast, press, process, Speaking, Story

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST HERE

I was recently a guest on the Future Tripping Podcast, a project of the Trauma Stewardship Institute. The host, Laura van Dernoot Lipsky, is an author/activist, an internationally recognized leader in the field of trauma exposure ~ and one of my dearest friends for the past 30+ years! As such, she holds all the pieces of my personal, family, work and creative life. At its core, our conversation reveals the depth and breadth of “making art to better understand my cultural inheritance and legacy,” and shows why art – the creation and maintenance of it – can be an essential act of liberation.💗

Artwork Archive Spotlight Interview

article, creativity, inspiration, Narrative, press, process
What an honor to be selected as Artwork Archive‘s Featured Artist of the week!!
Artwork Archive has streamlined all my business needs ~ tracking inventory and sales, invoicing, managing my art portfolio and client list, etc. Less time doing admin work means more time creating in the studio.
.
In this conversation with Paige Simianer, I had the opportunity to reflect on exploring identity and legacy through my art practice…⭐️

Art Magazine Article

Activism, article, creativity, Exhibition, inspiration, Narrative, press, Print, process, Story

I am delighted to be featured in the Summer issue of PublicDisplay.ART ~ Seattle’s only community-supported, arts-focused publication. What an honor to be in the company of so many artists I admire. And it’s the first time my art & story has been featured in print media!

If you’re in Seattle, you can find the magazine at 600+ local retailers, restaurants, cafes, galleries, bars and libraries around town. Or if you prefer, you can view the issue online here (I’m on pg 26-27).

PublicDisplay.ART is published by OneReel, the same organization that produces NW Folklife and Bumbershoot (among many other cultural events/projects year round).

 

 

Art Pages

Art Journal, creativity, Crush/Repeat, Gallery, inspiration, process

In March, I participated in Crush/Repeat, a 31-day challenge to create something every day. I decided to focus on creating a small painting in my sketchbook daily.  And now I can’t stop!

I could line a shelf with all the sketchbooks I’ve abandoned after a couple pages of tentative marks. So I pulled out my smallest (5.5″x8.5″), cheapest sketchbook  and let go of any expectation to produce anything finished. My only goal was to show up & play ~ experimenting with colors, materials and techniques. The lessons learned from these bold little explorations are starting to show up in my larger paintings.

Starting my days by writing in my journal, followed by a 20 minute art page, loosens me up and gets me in the zone. I am no longer tethered to needing a full day in the studio to feel like I got my creativity fix. If 20 minutes is all I have, I know it will be enough. 🤠

(I’m grateful to my friend, Helen Kim, for showing me the way of her morning pages.)

 

Chateau Orquevaux

collaboration, creativity, inspiration, process, Residency

Day One

Three weeks after returning from France, I’m finally sitting down to reflect on this residency experience and the profound impact it has made on my art practice and my life.

I spent the month of September at Chateau Orquevaux in France with 17 other artists. We’re writers, painters, collage artists, photographers, builders and makers from Iran, India, Ukraine, Russia, El Salvador, Canada, and the US. All but 2 were there for the full 4 weeks. The setting was sublime.  Every resident had a private room and private studio.  Just imagine waking up to this view every morning!

View from my bed(!!!)

View from my bed (!!!)


I lucked out by also having an en suite bathroom (shhh!!) and a private bath. And here’s the kicker ~ all meals were provided. There was never a shortage of food. Or wine. Or coffee…

Classically trained Chef Marie brings the joy every single night, providing numerous menu options to accommodate everyone’s dietary needs.


Especially as a mom, having all my needs met, having nowhere else and no one else I needed to be, nothing else I needed to be doing but diving deep and creatively exploring was life changing. 

The Stables. My studio = carriage doors on the left.

My studio was in the stables, just down the driveway from the Chateau. As someone with a home studio, this ritual of walking to my work space was new to me. I came to appreciate this short commute between where I live and where I create. This distance gave me the privacy I needed to release the pressure valve and finally explore matters I’d been avoiding. With no to-do lists cluttering my mind, my journal pages were filling with hopes, dreams, and fears that needed a wide expanse of time and space to surface. 

Then, with my heart wide open and vulnerable, I would head into the studio. Instead of listening to podcasts, as per usual, I listened to music. Following a tip from my writer friend Jonathon, when I found a song that resonated with the emotional space I was in (or wanted to be in), I added it to my ChateauO playlist and put it on repeat. And wow, did that open doors I wasn’t ready for. My thinky brain was no longer in command of my creative process. All I could do was paint my way through my feelings…which was one of my creative goals.

Rise & Shine, Acrylic & oil on 30″x 40″ linen canvas.


At this point, I could write about the work I made, the breakthrough pieces, my choice of medium and materials. And maybe I will in another post. But here’s the honest truth. I was ready to show up and make a lot of work. I was prepared to push myself to go deeper. I was looking forward to luxe accommodations and exploring the grounds and the town.

But what blindsided me was the degree to which I would fall in love with my fellow residents. After 2+ years of being an isolated pod person, I felt socially awkward and dreaded having to engage with strangers for 4 weeks. Luckily from what I could tell, socializing was limited to dinners and sporadic evening events.

Chateau Orquevaux ~ September 2022 Residents

I never imagined a gathering of such talented, brilliant, wickedly funny people. We laughed, danced, sang, cried, explored, told stories, bore witness, made art, played dress up, took chances, and bared our souls. My final Instagram reel contains no images of the mountains of art we made. Just photos of people falling in love, making memories that will last a lifetime.  All in the span of 28 days.

 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by eliaichi kimaro (@elikimaro)

 

Residency Goals

creativity, inspiration, Narrative, process, Residency, Story

I have the good fortune of spending the month of September at an international artist residency in the Champagne region in France. Chateau Orquevaux offers 2- and 4- week residencies to artists of all disciplines from around the world. This will be my first experience at an international residency.

As I close down my studio and pack my bags, I have a few goals in mind:

1. I will leave my oil and encaustic paints at home, and instead travel with acrylic paints, charcoal, ink, watercolor, crayons. And I want to work on paper so that I can pack all my work in my backpack and suitcases when I come home. Travel light. Keep it simple.

2. When COVID shut the world down, I took advantage of the increased access I had to teachers/mentors. When they went online with their course offerings, I was right there, ready to soak up their teachings. So the past 2 years for me has been a period of intensive learning about color, value, design, texture, best studio practices ~ just arming myself with knowledge to expand and deepen my ability to paint and see.

But the more I learned, the harder it became to paint instinctively. My brain became a bully, taking command of the creative process. All my choices became conscious, calculated decisions. I was thrilled to discover that I could apply what I know to resolve my painting at any stage ~ especially those early stages with fresh, energetic marks. The flipside was that I grew precious about my work, fearful about letting go and trusting that something better would emerge. As a result, my paintings ~ which used to be 20-30 layers deep ~ became very surface and shallow.

So my goal now is to find my way back to how I used to paint. I need to trust that all my learning is there and accessible if/when I need it. But I don’t want to lead with my head any more. I want to return to using my gut as my guide to painting my truth.