Ethan Murrow’s multidisciplinary practice—which spans drawings, paintings, murals, sculptures, and publications—delves into narrative explorations of landscape, environment, agriculture, and the subjective nature of history.
Professor of the Practice in Drawing and Painting at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts.
Portal to the Valley
Graphite on paper
90 x 90 cm
35 3/8 x 35 3/8 in
2023
Unique piece
“The valley is a bit like a hidden jewel, reached by winding roads through forests with their hollows and openings. It is often full of mist and fast-moving clouds, sometimes captured in the giant sequoias. I was moved by this sensory reality and my drawing celebrates this joyful feeling, with the half-plant, half-human character in love with this natural beauty.
This romantic vision of the landscape could easily overshadow the day-to-day reality of farming, the complex issues of ecology and the struggle of people who strive to collaborate, to engage in dialogue with the environment. To illustrate this, I have the character read an imaginary text about the beginnings of vines and wine, to highlight the links between vineyards in the United States and those in Europe. Below them is a cultivated vineyard, which contrasts with the wilder surrounding hills.“