Studio Visit
About
Vielmetter Los Angeles is pleased to present an ambitious series of new paintings by Esther Pearl Watson. “Safer at Home: Pandemic Paintings,” was begun in March at the onset of the shelter in place orders in Los Angeles and spans the timeline of the Covid-19 Pandemic through a diaristic narrative. In a continuous series of over 100 paintings Watson chronicles her and her family’s experience of the pandemic and subsequent events that have unfolded over the last several months offering an opportunity to reflect upon this year of upheaval and change.
Watson documents the daily anxieties and absurdities of quarantine in and around the city and suburbs of Los Angeles. In intimately scaled paintings, she depicts various places along her daily routine– from dropping off weekly care packages with her family members who live in group homes, to her studio in Glassell Park, to mundane activities such as buying groceries and taking walks in the neighborhood. The paintings show recurring images of local businesses struggling to stay open, Watson’s attempts to form a pandemic pod, and nervous neighbors adjusting to normalcy-in-flux as various pressures create perpetual daily uncertainty. Watson’s titles are sourced from her diary, extending the sensibility of her memory paintings, and documenting places like her mother’s Senior Living facility or the La Fiesta Party Supply store, locations that reappear slightly altered as time passes and we continue to adapt.
In an attempt to have some sense of control over her situation, Watson’s landscapes cover the crisis in healthcare, human rights, labor, and education. Like ex-votos, a snippet of text and a date hang in the sky: ”June 26, 2020… A house down the street offers free home-made masks”. The paintings point to parallel struggles and celebrations through exterior glimpses of Los Angeles that exist alongside Watson’s daily routines.
“March Set,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
Dimensions variable
Inventory #EPW364
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
The colorful and intimate paintings are arranged in groupings by month and are punctuated in stark contrast with drooping black banners containing numbers increasing in size as they depict the total US death count from the virus: 1, 250, 10,000, 150,000, 200,000 etc. The black cloth hovers and drapes, like an ever-present weight, growing and growing until it balloons to an ominous size. Over time we see the Coronavirus deaths double, sometimes within days, reminding us of the gravity of the situation.
While the fabric banners depict the undeniable deaths in the U.S., the paintings of exteriors portray the individual realities so many of us are experiencing. Many of our private struggles remain hidden behind walls. As the dates progress, we can see the conversation changing in the political murals on the side of a small business, yard signs, and the ever-ubiquitous Amazon delivery trucks in the streets. The pandemic paintings highlight how disparities, long overlooked, eventually become visible, raw, and explosive.
“June 26, House Offers Homemade Masks,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW303
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“June 1, Why Does Equality Scare You,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW289
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“January 24, There is a New Virus,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW230
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“February 25, Spreading Far Away,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW233
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“February 26, CDC Confirms a Case,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW234
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“April 3, CDC Recommends Wearing Face Masks,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
9 x 12" [HxW] (22.86 x 30.48 cm)
Inventory #EPW254
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“April 7, Rose Bowl Covid-Testing,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
11 x 14" [HxW] (27.94 x 35.56 cm)
Inventory #EPW256
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“April 11, I Stand Away From Others,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW258
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“April 12, Hugs Were A No,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW259
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“April 24, Disinfectants Inside the Body,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW264
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“April 29, A Friend Tests Positive,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW267
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“May 2, Protesters Demand Beaches Open,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW268
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“May 13, Senior Living Virus Testing,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 8" [HxW] (20.32 x 20.32 cm)
Inventory #EPW275
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“May 24, Party Supply on Lincoln Avenue,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW279
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“May 25, George Floyd Died,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW283
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“May 30, Curfew 8:00 pm to 5:00 am,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW286
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“June 4, Tolerance, Injustice and Change,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW293
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“June 7, La Pintoresca Park Protest,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW295
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“June 19, Rose Bowl Juneteenth Caravan,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW298
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
Collection of Taymour Grahne; New York, NY, USA
“June 20, Skate for Justice Protest,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
11 x 14" [HxW] (27.94 x 35.56 cm)
Inventory #EPW301
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“July 9, Stomach Problems and Panic Attacks,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW307
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“July 17, Protest Systemic Problems,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW312
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“July 17, John Lewis Passed Away,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW313
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“July 19, On the Brink of Shutting Down,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW315
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“August 1, How Long Is This Crisis Going to Last?,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 8" [HxW] (20.32 x 20.32 cm)
Inventory #EPW319
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“August 14, Changes To the United States Postal Service,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW326
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“September 6, Outdoors Is Unbearable,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 8" [HxW] (20.32 x 20.32 cm)
Inventory #EPW334
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“September 13, The Air Was So Toxic,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
9 x 12" [HxW] (22.86 x 30.48 cm)
Inventory #EPW337
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“September 14, Pandemic Brain Fog,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW338
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“September 17, Smoke from the Bobcat Fire Cleared,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
11 x 14" [HxW] (27.94 x 35.56 cm)
Inventory #EPW341
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“September 27, Halloween Not Recommended,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW346
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“October 2, President and First Lady test Positive,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
9 x 12" [HxW] (22.86 x 30.48 cm)
Inventory #EPW347
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“October 3, Poll Worker Sign Up,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW348
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“October 8, Covid Test, Dodger Stadium,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
9 x 12" [HxW] (22.86 x 30.48 cm)
Inventory #EPW349
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
“October 17, City Hall Ballot Box,” 2020
Acrylic with pencil on panel
8 x 10" [HxW] (20.32 x 25.4 cm)
Inventory #EPW353
Courtesy of the artist and Vielmetter Los Angeles
Photo credit: Jeff Mclane
Exhibition Walkthrough
Bio
Esther Pearl Watson (b. 1973) lives and works in Los Angeles. She received her MFA from California Institute of the Arts. Her paintings have been exhibited at Concord Center for the Visual Arts, Concord, MA, Contemporary Art Museum of Plainview, Plainview, TX, University of Wisconsin-Parkside, Parkside, WI, Maureen Paley Gallery in London, and the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas, USA, amongst others. In 2013 she was Artist-in-Residence at Grafikiens Hus, Mariefred, Sweden. Her award-winning comic “Unlovable” was published in Bust Magazine and with Fantagraphics. She has published Blood Lady Commandos on Vice online and Welcome to Crapland on Adult Swim online. She has taught at Oxbow Artist Residency, the Lexicon of Sexicana at Columbia College in Chicago, and is currently teaching at ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena, California.