Erik Otto

"Where my mother grew up in Texas, one of the largest employers was NASA, and she was fortunate enough to be present during the Apollo 11 mission that resulted in mans first step on the moon. Through this influence and my early discovery of Carl Sagan, I developed a curiosity for the solar system, the elements that connect us all, and the many symbolisms different cultures apply to the cosmos.

The silver moon concept combines the self-reflective qualities of silver and the healing powers of the moon. Separated marks carefully arranged and suspended within the composition each depict natural elements while producing a suggestive horizon with the moons sitting still in its fullness on a seemingly endless black surface. This piece was created during a time of reinvention within the studio as I committed to producing an all new body of work exploring the symbolic characteristics of waves and water. " - Erik Otto

Erik Otto is a mixed-media artist working professionally in the creative disciplines of painting, sculpture and site-specific installation for over 10 years. Erik has held exhibitions nationally in New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington DC and internationally in Vancouver, Mexico City, and Berlin. He was selected for the SF Recology Artist-in-Residence Program, received the VSCO Artist Initiative Grant, and produced work for YBCA Bay Area Now 7. He currently has work held in the private collections of the Grand Hyatt, Microsoft, LinkedIn, One Medical Group, and Uber.

Avid cyclist, explorer of the outdoor world, and firm believer of taking risks, he once self-initiated and self-funded a 6-month long artist residency in the middle of Mexico City that resulted in a pop-up exhibition in an abandoned building just prior to it’s demolition.

Erik grew up in the South Bay Area, lived in San Francisco for 12 years, and is now based in Brooklyn, NY.