Artists of Downtown: Eronone
By Tianna Edwards
Eye-catching graffiti murals add personality, vibrancy and dimension to the mundane. I love the way Kingston has embraced street art culture and has allowed artists to boldly display their work on prominent buildings. You may have walked by seasoned artist, Aaron Forsyth, aka Eronone’s murals in town and downtown Kingston. He's a local artist who has been contributing to the art community for decades. His most popular mural can be found on the waterfront walkway of the Delta hotel and captures the spirit of Kingston perfectly.
Scroll down to learn more about Forsyth and his influence on the local art scene.
Tianna Edwards: Tell me a bit about yourself. And your medium.
Eronone: My name is Aaron, and I’m from Kingston. I am a full-time artist best known for my murals and public artwork around the city.
My favourite medium for painting larger-scale artworks is spray paint; I like the variety of effects and line work that can be created with a can of spray paint. My go-to and all-time favourite materials are pencil and paper. I also create digital artwork and smaller canvas work for customers and clients, so my iPad is also a great tool.
TE: Your work can be found all over the city! Tell us where we can find your work downtown?
E: My work can be found in a number of places around the city, both commercial and residential.
A few downtown murals that are popular are the Pizza Monster one at Montreal and Raglan, and the Delta hotel waterfront walkway at the base of Johnson St.
TE: Do you have a favourite project?
E: It’s really hard to pick a favourite, but I will say the “Transformations” mural at the AGNES was a fun one. It was painted with a group of friends and fellow artists over the course of a weeklong residency at the Agnes Etherington Art Centre on Queen’s University campus.
Not only was the mural massive (it covered the majority of the building’s exterior), but the entire process was enjoyable, and it was really well received by the community. It was extra cool to see all of the people using the mural as a backdrop when taking photos. It got to a point where there were too many people to count who were using it as a photo op.
TE: What’s your favourite part of being part of downtown Kingston’s art community?
E: My favourite thing is how embraced by the community I’ve felt while doing something I love for a living. Being creative is my passion, and sharing my artwork with the public allows me to engage and speak with people face-to-face when producing pieces of art outdoors and at events.
I have also more recently enjoyed opening up my studio space (with the help of my wife Em, who is also an artist), The Wherehouse, for more events and collaborations to not only create my own artwork, but act as a community hub for creatives of all disciplines. I’m always happy to meet new people, answer questions and receive direct feedback.
It’s the best when someone lets me know that my artwork has added to their day in a positive way.
TE: Anything you’d like to add?
E: I’d like to thank all the people that I have had the opportunity to work with and for, from The City of Kingston, Tourism Kingston, the school boards I’ve done workshops with and all who have purchased a canvas or a sticker, tagged me in a picture, shared and supported my artwork. Thank you.
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Tianna Edwards
Tianna is a wife and mom of two young kids with a day job as an Equity, Diversity, Inclusion Coordinator at Queen's. She takes pride in living in Kingston and loves celebrating all things local (mostly food related!) through her blog, Keep up with Kingston. Follow Tianna's blog for more local food, culture and shop inspo. Get the latest from her over on instagram.
