What
is Visionary Art?
An Article which
mentions Erial, by Alex Grey
BIOGRAPHICAL
SUMMARY
Artist,
Writer, Storyteller and Musician Erial, has been drawing since he
was 3 years old.
*At
age 11 he began painting by copying the Masters and observing Nature.
His other major
influences were Comic-books, Science-fiction, Fantasy, and his own
personal Dream Adventures.
*He
graduated High School in 1973 with Honors and went on to 4 years
of College where he majored in Illustration &
Design. He worked at night for Job Shops such as 'Say Graphics”
& "Hugh's Aircraft" as a Technical Illustrator, which
also included Layout, Design, Production, Paste-up and Camera work.
He learned his precise Pen & Ink technique here.
*After
this he became a Free-lance Illustrator and Designer working for
companies such as “Educational Insights” doing
Black & White and Color Illustrations for Children’s Magazines,
Books and Educational Materials. In his twenties a strong
personal style began to emerge and he contributed to several magazines
including, Fantasy Book and Elan Vital’ (Journal
of Art, Philosophy and Science) with Spot Illustrations for Short
Stories.
*To
further his Education he began studies in Mythology, Metaphysics,
Philosophy, Dream-theory, Meditation and
Spirituality, among other more esoteric disciplines. Subsequently
his work began to move from an almost
exclusive Fantasy/sci-fi orientation to including more Spiritual
and Mythological themes.
*
In the early 1980’s he completed a successful series of Sum-i-style
Watercolor Portraits of Aboriginal Peoples of
the World. Showings of the paintings took place in the LA Nicole
Gallery and Center Theater of Los Angeles. Other
commercial work included Illustrations for Meditation Magazine and
designing Posters and Flyers for Botanical
Dimensions (Terence& Kat Mckenna) of Hawaii. He also did Storyboards
for film at the Dave Lowery Studio.
*Later
in the 80’s he studied Mythology, Storytelling and Shamanism
at the Ojai Foundation, as well as to attend
Lecture/Conferences on the Roots of Consciousness and Creativity
at the Esalen Institute of Big Sur, California.
*In
1991 he worked on several Animated Films for Don Bluth Studios as
an “Assistant Effects Animator.” The films included
“Thumbelina”, “A Troll in Central Park”
and an experimental Japanese Short. At the same time he began work
on his own
graphic novel "In Search of Wonder" doing many groundbreaking
drawings and paintings of Other-Dimensional Beings.
*His
personal search for meaning and a deeper sense of purpose culminated
in a series of spectacular Visionary
Experiences, where he was witness to Untold Wonders of the Divine
Imagination and Beyond.
*They inspired several Personal Projects, Stories, Paintings and
Drawings. Many of the paintings were
seen at a Two-man Show with the Fiber-Optic Light-Sculptor Gregg
Stephens, at the Illuminarts Gallery in North
Hollywood, California. He called these highly detailed airbrush
paintings: “Transdimensional Realism.” Several of
which he also exhibited at the “Art Rock Gallery” in
San Francisco, in a group show with other notable Visionary Artists.
*During
the 90’s he completed a series of large paintings called “Cosmic
Devas” or “Galactic Angels”, based on Angelic
Visitations. These works appeared at several shows including, “Things
from Heaven” in Ventura, Cal., The”Whole Life Expo
Visionary Art Gallery” in LA, The “Eco Expo” at
the LA Convention Center, and the “Band of Angels Concert"
in Ventura, CA.
*In
1997 Erial self-published a small book (Issue #0) of Pen & Ink
Drawings and writings called, “In Search of Wonder.”
He participated in the 1999 multi-media event, “Imagine Los
Angeles”, held at the LA Convention Center, where his was
a
Featured Artist, and again exhibited the Cosmic Deva paintings based
on his encounters with Ultra-terrestrials.
*In
2000 he was Art–Director for the “Millennium 2000 Celebration,
Performance and Video, at the Solar Studios in
Glendale, California, where he created a Sacred Space for music,
performance and fine dining.
*He
continued studies in Sacred Geometry, Human Potential, and Intuition
at the Inner Light Center
of Malibu, California where he held an exhibition of “Prints,
Paintings, and Pen & ink drawings."
*Erial
was invited in 2001 to participate in a Sacred Geometry Conference
at the Institute for Metaphysics
in Joshua Tree, California., where he gave a slide presentation
of selected Paintings and Drawings.
*Between
2003 & 2005 Erial focused on creating Full-color Paintings for
the Poetry and Art collaboration
called "Pearls from Inner Earth." He also made some strides
in creating the ”Celestial Visions” paintings.
*In
2006 he was invited by Alex Grey to exhibit some Mandala images
for the Contemporary Mandala Show at the
MICROCoSM Gallery Show in New York City. The same year he was published
in Alex Grey's CoSM Journal, which
features the leading edge in Visionary Art and Culture. The “Gaian
Overlord” painting and a short Bio appeared.
*Later
that year his art was included in Iasos's on-line Visionary Art
Gallery where he was a Featured Artist.
*His art also appeared on two Magazine Covers, "Paradigm Shift"
in England, and "Eso-Tour" in Majorca, Spain.
*October 2006 saw him contribute art for the "Galactik Trading
Card Oracle Complex,' published by Delvin of B.C.
* In late October of 2006 his art appeared on a 24 foot mural for
the "I Am Family of Light" gathering in the UK.
*2007 saw the "advanced" publication of the Art &
Poetry collaboration with Dov Gertzweig called "Pearls from
Inner
Earth."
*Later
in 2007 he became involved in a Multi-media Project in association
with "The Exploration Center,"
concerning the Mysterious Origins and Exalted Destiny of the Human
Race,
where he's contributed Storyboards, Art Direction, and Visioning
for the project.
*In November of 2007 Erial he exhibited a Signed, Limited Edition
Print, at the CoSM Gallery in New York City
for the Gala Benefit Dinner "Metamorphosis."The
Art is part of an auction in support of the new site for Alex Grey's
Chapel of Sacred Mirrors.
*More
details upon request. Thank you.
