Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric Huebsch.
Hi Eric, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
While in graduate school, I decided I wanted to move to LA or NYC and after visiting both locations, Los Angeles felt like a better fit. My girlfriend and I spent a bit of time looking for a place that would allow us space to make artwork, and luckily someone told us to try looking by the LA river. We ended up finding a loft space in the area now called the Arts District in 2002 when the area was pretty quiet and raw, and we’re still there. Since then, I’ve had the good fortune to work at two great galleries, Peres Projects and Matthew Marks, and in 2014 I made the decision to dedicate more of my time creating artwork and have been able to piecemeal together adjunct teaching jobs at various colleges since then.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
That’s a relative question. For me, blindly moving to a city without a job and then having learn and try to insert myself into an art scene that is constantly shapeshifting has been a challenge. I’m a relatively quiet, shy and reserved person and so trying to stick my neck out to grab attention is still a constant struggle.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a bit of a chameleon; I can create using any material. Even though I have a really wide range of skills and ideas, there are conceptual threads that run through all of my work: environmental health, specifically humanity’s use of the natural world as a bottomless reservoir for both raw materials and as a garbage dump, and man’s awkward fumbling through day-to-day life. In 2019, I was invited to be the first artist-in-residence at a plastics manufacturing plant in Woodstock, IL, specifically to transform waste or recyclable raw plastic into artwork. And last year, my work was featured in “New American Painting” (issue #145); that was a nice acknowledgment of my dedication to my studio practice.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Sure… it’s all about assessment. For me physically, yeah, I’m definitely a HSS (High Sensation Seeker) so risk taking is in my nature. Physically, I‘ve probably have pushed and challenged my body and mind in ways most people wouldn’t dare. I grew up enjoying skating and snowboarding and since moving to LA, I have been surfing every chance I can. I do like pushing the edge (but as I’ve gotten older, I am less interested in finding that limit)!
Contact Info:
- Email: erichuebsch@hotmail.com
- Website: www.cockandoodle.com
- Instagram: cockandoodle and boobooandfifihijinx
