The Numbers Add Up for Robin Erickson

Call it paint by numbers. Mathematician turned artist Robin Erickson learned watercolor late in life. But the same skills she used to help the navy develop simulators and calibrate its weapons, help her with her art. “Art is problem solving,” said Erickson. “That is why I love math – give me problem and I will solve it.” Her pursuit of art started 15 years ago with a simple coin toss. Erickson and a friend couldn’t decide whether to take a creative writing or an art class. The Fallbrook resident took the watercolor class, joined the watercolor society and “never looked back.” A member of the Brandon Gallery for past two years, Erickson is known for her transparent style of watercolors. Often her paintings capture images reflected in glass or water. Her subject matter can range from whimsical to poetic, and even abstract in appearance. Typically Erikson works from photographs she takes in urban settings where the subject, unaware of the photographer, is caught in a candid pose in a reflection. She was featured on the initial poster for the "Art of the Flower" Festival and is also very active in the San Diego Watercolor Society. She keeps up her craft by attending a couple workshops each year. An example of Erickson’s work, Coffee with Mistry, a reflective watercolor of her husband, brother and rat terrier, is on display in the lobby of the new Fallbrook Area Visitors Bureau office on Alvarado Street near downtown Fallbrook.

Les Perhacs Relishes the Journey of Art

Les Perhacs was born into the world of art. At age 3 he showed talent as an artist. By the age of six he was welding together toys alongside his Hungarian-born father, a master machinist and inventor. But for Perhacs, now a world renown sculptor, it was more about creating the toys than actually playing with them. Throughout his life, it was a theme that was central to Perhac’s art experience. Rather than the destination, it was the journey that fulfilled the Fallbrook-based artist. “Each artist lives for the process,” he explained. His early work focused on realism using animal forms as the subject. He drew much of his inspiration from a naturalist uncle who taught him to appreciate the outside world, even the harsh realities of Southern California deserts. In 1989 he moved to Fallbrook after spending two decades in the Pacific Northwest. His studio includes a private bronze foundry that allows him to create-one-of-a-kind bronze works along with small editions. His study under abstract expressionists David Smith and Willem DeKooning at Pratt Institute in New York laid a strong foundation. For the past decade, Perhacs works bounced back and forth between realism and abstraction. In the end, however, he said “art is part of the human experience.” His sculpture can be found at the Whatcorn Museum in Washington as well as at the San Diego International Airport. You can also find his work at a gallery in Taos, N.M. He is working on a series of sculptures for a show at the Oceanside Museum in November. For more on Perhacs, go to: www.lesperhacs.com

Angela Koenig Brings the World to Fallbrook

Angela Koenig is a student of the world. Growing up in a Navy family, she traveled extensively and studied with several renowned artists including Seigfreid Hahn and Howard Wexler from Stuttgart, Germany, Rafael Maniago from the Philippines, and Ning Yeh from China. The Temecula resident has also worn a corporate hat. She has a real estate broker’s license and served as a high-ranking executive in the insurance industry. After becoming a member of the Brandon Galley cooperative, she helped bring a business sense to one of the oldest co-op galleries on the West Coast as well an international flavor to the collective. A sample of her work, Idea of Lotus, is on display in the lobby of the Fallbrook Area Visitors Bureau office on Alvarado Street near downtown Fallbrook. The Asian inspired art utilizes Chinese Brush, a new medium for Koenig that has allowed her to paint with greater conviction and fluidity. “The thing about Chinese Brush is it’s very spontaneous,” she explained. Koenig also uses oil, watercolor, acrylic and pastel. “I love them all,” she said. She paints plein air and finds inspiration all over, including live models, and from her own photography. Koi often serve as an inspiration for Koenig’s work. In recent trips to the countryside of China and Tibet, she found the Koi in the homes of the villagers and in contemporary and ancient the artwork as a spiritual symbol of strength and masculinity. For more on Koenig, go to www.essenceartstudio.com