“Color has emotional weight and is related to the shape of space. Drawing or painting, for me, means to look at the thing and transmit its vitality to the canvas.”
Known for an engaging style and versatility in subject matter, AIMEE ERICKSON is
an internationally renowned oil painter and instructor who has given lectures and demonstrations at venues nationwide and abroad. A standout at plein air painting competitions, she has won both Best of Show and Artists’ Choice at Plein Air Easton, as well as Best of Show at Carmel, Sonoma, Olmsted, Laguna, and Pacific Northwest Plein Air art festivals. Erickson has been a Portrait Society of America finalist, won Best of Show at an American Women Artists national show, and is a signature member with multiple awards from Oil Painters of America. She has exhibited with international plein-air groups in China and Russia, is an inaugural member of Charlie Hunter’s En Train Air expedition, and in 1997 painted the official portrait of governor of Oregon Barbara Roberts. Her work has been featured in Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine, Southwest Art Magazine, American Art Collector, and Plein Air Magazine, and on OutdoorPainter.com. Her first book, Plein Air Techniques for Artists: Principles and Methods for Painting in Natural Light, was released in 2023 and is widely available. Erickson has a BFA in Visual Communication Design with an Illustration emphasis. She lives in Portland, Oregon, and carries a sketchbook.
AFFILIATIONS
Plein Air Painters of America. Signature member
Oil Painters of America, Signature member
Laguna Plein Air Painters Association. Signature member
California Art Club
American Impressionist Society
Salmagundi Club
En Train Air
Oregon Society of Artists
AWARDS & SHOWS
2023 Still Life Award of Excellence, Oil Painters of America National Exhibition
2023 American Impressionist Society Small Works Show
2023 Laguna Beach Plein Air Painting Invitational
2023 U.S. Representative for the Plein Air Cultural Exchange with Turkmenistan
2023 Oregon Society of Artists Invitational Monotype Party
2023 Solo Exhibition, Meyer Gallery Santa Fe
2022 "The Wild Side" Catalina Invitational
2022 Solo Exhibition, Meyer Vogl Gallery
2020 California Art Club Gold Medal Exhibition
2020 Oregon Society of Artists Invitational Monotype Party2019 Plein Air Easton: Grand Prize, Artists' Choice, Paint Oxford Artists' Choice
2019 China’s Crown Jewel: Recent Paintings of Guangzhou Province by American Artists, at American Legacy Fine Arts
2019 En Train Air Inaugural Exhibition, McLarry Fine Art
2019 Solo exhibition, Vessels, at Meyer Gallery in Santa Fe
2019 "Inside Voices" at Meyer Vogl Gallery
2019 Maui Plein Air
2019 Sonoma Plein Air
2019 Laguna Beach Plein Air Invitational
2019 Catalina: the Wild Side Exhibition
2019 Demo at PACE (Plein Air Convention and Expo)
2019 Oil Painters of America National Juried Show
2019 California Art Club Gold Medal Show
2019 Virtuosos of the OPA
2018 Sino-American Plein Air, Kaiping, China
2018 Best Use of Color, Olmsted Plein Air Invitational
2018 American Impressionist Society Small Works Showcase
2018 "Nocturnes" solo showcase, Meyer Vogl Gallery
2018 Oil Painters of America Salon Show
2018 Second Place, Best New Artist to Easton. Plein Air Easton
2018 Artists' Choice, Paint Grand Traverse
2018 Sonoma Plein Air
2018 National Scenic Area Award, Pacific Northwest Plein Air
2018 Kinsman Family Foundation Award, Laguna Plein Air Invitational
2017 Best in Show, Laguna Plein Air Invitational
2017 International Plein Air, Kostroma, Russia
2017 Best of Show and Museum Purchase Award, Pacific Northwest Plein Air
2017 Best of Show and Clyde Aspevig Judge's Choice Awards, Olmsted Plein Air
2017 Door County Plein Air
2017 "Six by Nine Sale," Portrait Society of America invitational show
2017 Oil Painters of America National Juried Exhibition
2017 Oil Painters of America Paint-out/paint-in, 4th place
2016 Laguna Beach Plein Air Invitational
2016 Second Place & Best Water, Pacific Northwest Plein Air
2016 Best of Show, Just Plein Fun, Balboa Island, California
2016 End-of-Residency Solo Exhibition, University Club of Portland
2016 Still Life Honorable Mention, OPA National Exhibition, Dallas TX
2016 4th Place, OPA's Best Little Paint-out in Texas
2016 University Club of Portland Artist-in-Residence Alumni Showcase
2016 Mid-Residency Solo Show, University Club of Portland
2016 "All Along the Sierra" Juried Show at Epperson Gallery
2016 "Less is More" LPAPA at Forest & Ocean Gallery
2015 "Inspired by Sorolla" LPAPA at Forest & Ocean Gallery
2015 "LPAPA After Dark," Forest & Ocean Gallery
2015 "Recent Paintings" solo show at Brian Marki Fine Art
2015 "Instructors' Show" Multnomah Arts Center
2015 Strada Award, Laguna Beach Plein Air
2015 OPA National Exhibition, Cutter & Cutter Fine Art, St. Augustine FL
2015 Sonoma Plein Air
2015 Mendocino Open Paint Out, Celebrity Guest Artist
2015 Door County Plein Air
2015 OPA Western Regional Exhibition
2015 "Where in the World is Plein Air" online national paint-out
2015 "Six by Nine Sale," Portrait Society of America invitational show
2015 "Everyday Taste of Plein Air" invitational show, Giustina Gallery at OSU
2015 Best QuickDraw and Honorable Mention, Carmel Art Festival
2015 "Aimee Erickson and Wayne McKenzie" at Nancy Dodds Gallery
2015 Honorable Mention, Kern County Plein Air
2014 Award of Excellence for Portraiture, Oil Painters of America National Juried Exhibition
2014 Award of Exceptional Merit, Portrait Society of America International Art of the Portrait Competition
2014 Gold Medal, First Annual International Juried Artists Guild Exhibition
2014 Best of Show, American Women Artists National Juried Exhibition
2014 Artists' Choice/Best of Show, Sonoma Plein Air
2014 First Place, Carmel Art Festival
2014 Salmagundi Masters Exhibition, New York, NY
2014 First Place, Emerging Plein Air Artists Spring 2014 Contest
2014 Oil Painters of America Western Regional Exhibition
2014 Second Place, Pacific Northwest Plein Air
2013 Audubon Artists annual show. Gamblin Artists Color Materials Award
2013 Best Two-Dimensional Work, American Women Artists National Exhibition
2013 IN STILLNESS/IN MOTION solo show
2013 Sonoma Plein Air
2013 First Place, Pacific Northwest Plein Air (Becky Joy, Juror)
2013 First Place, Cityscape, First Annual Eugene Paint-out (Eric Jacobsen, juror)
2013 First Place, Honorable Mention, and People's Choice Award, Carmel Art Festival (Calvin Liang, juror)
2012 Best Western award, Pacific Northwest Plein Air (Randall Sexton, juror)
2012, 2014 Portland Art Museum Invitational Plein Air Paint Out
2012 Solo Show, Shaffer Fine Arts Gallery
2006-2014 Instructors' Show, Multnomah Arts Center
2010 Group Show, Walters Cultural Arts Center
2009 Second Place, Broderick Gallery's show "Unexpected Beauty: Street Views"
2001, 2002. 2003, 2004 Audubon Artists Annual Exhibitions, Salmagundi Club, New York, NY