I am an intellectual property lawyer in NYC. My plays include CANNED GOODS and MOSES IN BERLIN, and am currently working on a third play, THE WAITING ROOM PAINTED BLACK. I have also written a screenplay, MORE EQUAL, about the CIA’s Office of Policy Coordination and the development of the 1954 film version of Orwell’s Animal Farm. Before becoming a lawyer, I taught American and Chinese history to gifted students in Manhattan.
My writing is intended to raise questions through a theatrical lens that examines humanism, ontology and grace in the face of oppression. My plays look at the human sides of historical events that are sometimes lost in the tide of complex and wide ranging epochs, like world wars. In addition to learning about Twentieth Century military history, I am interested in the philosophy of religion, political and legal history. My work is supported, pressure-tested and edited by Katie Kahn.
My paintings are represented by Russ Steel in East Hampton, New York. His gallery is a great space filled with eclectic art located at 74 Montauk Highway, East Hampton, NY 11937. Russ can be reached at 631-324-7812 or 516-532-5472. Russ is old school with no web or social media. For reasons unknown to me, his gallery is called RE Steel Antiques. Russ is a great guy. He is extremely supportive and helpful in every respect. I’m lucky to know him.
Most of my paintings are in oil. I often use pigment sticks (generally R&F) applied directly to wood surfaces including gessobord and claybord. Graphite lines either fade in the layers of paint or are applied as the painting is drying. My preference is to avoid sharp lines and crisp distinctions in favor of allowing color to bleed through color. Generally, I get to an end result through weeks of layering color onto the wood, blending colors directly on the wood, letting the paint dry, adding color, and then applying a medium directly to the paint to get a varnished or waxy texture.
I do my best to admire without copying Gerhard Richter, Cy Twombly, Brice Marden, Francis Bacon, Franz Kline, Ad Reinhardt and of course Mark Rothko.
I live in Tenafly, New Jersey, with my wife Katie and daughter Avery. My older daughter Lucy lives and works in NYC. My son Pryor lives and works in Dallas. Katie and my three kids are extremely knowledgeable about art and are excellent critics. I value their input.
I can be reached at erik @ erikkahn.com. My cell is 917-952-0796.
