She was a pioneer, not only in the fields of mathematics and physics, but a role model for men and women. Not only of her time, but our time as well. ~ Arica Hilton, Producer
Arica Hilton, Producer, Artist & Poet
Arica Hilton, as an Artist & Poet, felt that Jyl Bonaguro’s play Urania resonated with her own works on the universe. Her paintings and poetry delve into the interconnectedness of human beings with the universe as she attempts to describe the various dimensions of space and time. She felt a kinship to Emilie because of her interminable research into mathematics and physics and felt her to be a role model for men and women. Her original painting for the stage backdrop for Urania is influenced by her Luminism series.
“If you are a poet you will see clearly that there is a cloud floating on this sheet of paper. Without a cloud, there will be no rain; without rain, the trees cannot grow; and without trees, we cannot make paper. If we look even more deeply, we can see the sunshine, the logger who cut the tree, the wheat that became his bread, and the logger’s father and mother. Without all these things, this sheet of paper cannot exist. In fact, we cannot point to one thing that is not here–time, space, the earth, the rain, the minerals in the soil, the sunshine, the cloud, the river, the heat, the mind. Everything co-exists with this sheet of paper. So we can say the cloud and the paper “inter-are.” We cannot just be by ourselves alone; we have to inter-be with every other thing.”
“As an artist my interest lies in the expression of the inexhaustible combinations of a visually aesthetic and spiritual language that transcends worlds. Specifically, I explore free organic forms through the layering and sensual deployment of color by evoking the rich spectral underpinnings of the simplicity and richness of the earth and its universal counterparts.
There is no set agenda for these ideas, as they are born of the immediate response of each brushstroke to another, catching the pure moment of expressionistic mixtures in harmony. The subjects evolve, transforming continuously in their meaning and complexity as the raw emotional presence that such techniques may evoke in the merging of hand, paint, eye and words. Thus, like the tonal qualities in music, my poetry and paintings attempt to touch something universally significant in all human beings, that meditative state of seeking their own light in the reflections and elements of nature and the universe.”
Much like the Luminists, the poetic art movement that captured light as it moved across the American Landscape, Arica Hilton’s works are inspired by the European Romanticists, who depicted cools waterscapes reflecting nuanced skies. She uses that as a springboard, not necessarily concerning herself with traditional landscape. While her work continues to share a feeling of tranquility, calm, and the sense of light piercing a soft, hazy “sky,” she takes on a “Post Luminist” feeling as she refers to a more ubiquitous aspect of nature, reaching beyond the tangible earth, water, sky, to the star forming galaxies of the universe. Hilton’s paintings and installations are intricately woven with her poetry, which brings yet another contemporary yet timeless quality to her works.
Arica Hilton lives and works in Chicago. Until recently, she was the president of the board of the Poetry Center of Chicago and was voted one of the LIT 50: Who Really Books in Chicago 2011 by New City. Her works have been seen in Fine Art Magazine, Michigan Avenue Magazine, Huffington Post, ASTRONOMY Magazine, ART WORLD NEWS, THE EXAMINER, CHICAGO TRIBUNE, CHICAGO SUN TIMES.
Among her most recent collaborations, Hilton curated the poetry aspect of “DIVINA NATURA,” sound and light installation with Italian artist Marco Nereo Rotelli at the Field Museum. She also wrote the storyline and poetry for photographer Dennis Manarchy’s “METAL” book which will be released in Spring 2014. Her painting, “UNIVERSE, Life Unlimited” was the backdrop for MYTHICAL PROPORTIONS, a one woman play at Theater Wit in Chicago by actress, Nora Dunn. According to Ms. Dunn, “your painting became a character in my play.” Her works are in major collections throughout the United States, Europe and Asia.
Arica Hilton’s book of poetry, “NO VISA TO ENTER” is due to be released in 2014. She is also preparing for a solo exhibition in Brussels.