Etta James (1938 - 2012) by Eddy Crosby

Etta James is one of my heroes. She overcame immense hardship in her childhood to become one of the great female singers. It's hard not to be moved by her voice which is full of emotion. When I draw Etta I want to capture some of this feeling.

Artist statement

For me, making pictures is about conveying ideas and telling stories. In my paintings, I enjoy showing humorous situations, weird characters and surreal combinations inspired by dreams, strange tales, old movies and pop culture ephemeral.

I am fascinated by the art and design of the 1950's and 1960's and my pictures combine and evoke the visual style of those times. I am attracted to stylisation, the contrasts of straight and curved lines and rich saturated colours.

My process is often a combination of analogue and digital techniques. I like to begin with pencil, pen, ink and brush embracing the "happy mistakes" of traditional tools. Colour is added digitally where I have the freedom to explore and experiment.