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Artist Eric Waugh has a jewel of a job!By Jennifer Saxon
Renowned artist Eric Waugh is celebrating his five year anniversary with the Princess Cruise Lines 'Art at Sea' program, auctioning original fine art and limited edition works on board. Waugh also captivates passengers with his dynamic musically accompanied live fine art performances and continues to be one of Princess Cruise's top selling artists.
Painting tirelessly since 1988, the self-taught and prolific Waugh has sold an astounding 35,000 original works of art as well as tens of thousands of editions, posters and fine art graphic prints and sculptures. His colorful, playful and joyous artwork has been a perfect and inspiring match as well for the many children's charities close to Waugh's heart, like the Starlight Children's Foundation. Eric also established the Guinness world book record for the largest painting created by one artist in his immense fundraising efforts for Camp Heartland.
If Eric could paint in his sleep he would. His creative mind never rests, his energy is unstoppable, and his only ever complaint is that there aren't enough hours in the day to bring all his ideas to fruition. Positive, passionate, vibrant, words that perfectly describe Eric Waugh, also describe his art.
'Pop Fusion', is what his style has been deemed. His unique blend of art incorporates a multitude of modern artistic genres including, pop art, expressionism, art deco and cubism. Waugh's exploration with pop fusion has given his art energy and vitality, resulting in an immediately recognizable, fresh, and distinctive Waugh style.
Vivacious, exhilarating, buoyant (perfect for a cruise ship!) and carefree. Waugh often paints people dancing, playing music, living and fully celebrating the simple pleasures of life. His images often include pets, and the serenity and joy they too bring to our lives. The people who respond to and collect Eric's work, seem to be those reflected in it. World travelers with outgoing, positive energy and uplifting, invigorating spirits. That's why it's no surprise that Eric Waugh's artwork is in the hands (and hearts) of thousands of collectors worldwide.
Before his explosion onto the international art scene, Waugh's earlier creative foray was in the field of product and graphic design, which ironically, brings Waugh full circle with this newest, exciting and most natural extension of his exceptional talents, skills and expertise.
In the past five years of traveling with Princess to the Baltic Sea, throughout the Caribbean, Europe and South America, with all the wonders he experienced, there was one thing Waugh noticed that was missing in the jewelry he saw. Color.
In the Fall of 2008, Waugh began sketching his first ideas for a jewelry line to be offered at the Princess on board boutiques. Inspired from his own collection of vibrant and original artwork, he pulled familiar icons of dogs, cats, stars and hearts to create the first few whimsical pendant designs.
By the summer of 2009 Eric fine-tuned his first few pendant proto-types, found a local Montreal jewelry maker, minutes from his own studio, and worked closely with them to create his unique signature look, select the finishes, the specific color hues and combinations, and the funky packaging, for his original twelve pendant styles.
In November 2009, The Emerald Princess was the first to 'come on board' giving the inaugural twelve pendant styles a trial run and were thrilled to see the items fly off the shelves. Waugh was overwhelmed. In Jan 2010, another 'test run' was done on the Sapphire Princess, and again, they flew. After the resounding success of the jewelry on the first two ships, a request was made that Waugh create an original line exclusively for the Meridian Bay Boutiques on Princess Cruises.
Now expanded, the line includes pendants, charm bracelets, earrings and watches. The official launch of Waugh's new line will take place on the Ruby Princess, July 16, 2010 with a ribbon cutting ceremony in the Meridian Bay Boutique. Waugh's full line will then be increasingly available throughout the Princess fleet in the upcoming months.
All of Eric Waugh's jewelry is handmade in Canada. This fun, fashionable, and affordable line is for women. Men's designs will follow in the near future. And Eric hasn't stopped there! He developed an additional line of delightful and playful merchandise for the Calypso Cove boutiques incorporating his trade mark cats and dogs with a seafaring twist onto t-shirts, caps, totes and mugs.
Waugh is ecstatic with the upcoming possibilities. Giving the opportunity for lovers of his original paintings to be able to share his wearable art as unique gifts, already packaged in little reusable tins with colorful tops, inspired by Waugh's paint cans in his Montreal art studio. Happy customers often purchasing a few items at a time, like a dog pendant for the lovely woman taking care of their precious canine while they sail the high seas. Or to be kept as mementos for themselves, a constant reminder of their wonderful Princess cruise.
And for those excited new customers whose introduction to Waugh is through his fantastical line of jewelry, their curiosity peaked to further explore Waugh's extensive collection of original artwork on board in the Gallery or at Auction in the Explorer's Lounge.
Eric Waugh is a family man. Married for over twenty years to his beloved wife Dini. They are the parents to three teen boys, Alex, Andrew and Matthew, a dog Moka and Casper, their cat. His signature trademark of five gold dots found on almost all of Waugh's pieces, lovingly represents his family. Fortunately his work enables him to travel and incredibly, the people he meets while traveling, hearing their stories, what brings them joy and happiness in their lives, is what in turn inspires Eric's work.
"What I find consistently is that no matter how different people may seem to be, the things in life that truly matter most, are the same for us all."
