Drawing on a background in fine arts and music, Erica began working as a welder and carpenter after receiving her Masters of Fine Arts from the Art Institute of Chicago in Performance. She joined Kehoe Designs as a Multimedia Artist, but quickly proved her talents as our Design Engineer – CNC Router Technician! Erica is now a skilled artisan with the unique fortuity to creatively use advanced technology on a daily basis.
Here’s our attempt at 20 Questions in 60 Seconds – Meet, artisan, Erica Gressman!
1. What three traits define you?
I’d say dedicated, ambitious, and creative.
2. What is your personal philosophy?
Work hard and play hard.
3. What’s one thing you couldn’t live without?
Oh! Loved ones.
4. What is the greatest challenge you have had to overcome in your life thus far?
Believing in myself.
5. What is the one thing you cannot resist?
Popcorn.
6. What is your greatest fear?
Falling out of an airplane.
7. Where is your favorite place to be?
The beach.
8. What is your favorite thing to do?
Play the drums!
9. Where is the best place you’ve traveled to?
Barcelona, Spain.
10. What’s the weirdest job you’ve ever had?
Dogsitting for a dog daycare.
11. What does true leadership mean to you?
Listening to others.
12. What inspires you most in your day-to-day life?
Music.
13. What has been the most important innovation you have witnessed in your lifetime?
Definitely the internet.
14. What do you enjoy most working at Kehoe Designs?
I’d say the creative energy.
15. What’s your inner spirit animal?
A wolf.
16. What are your three most overused words/phrases?
Like, um, okay.
17. How do you define success?
Being happy with what you do.
18. What is the best book you have ever read?
Parable of The Sower by Octavia Butler.
19. Why events? There are so many careers out there. Why this one?
The spectacle, and bringing people together!
20. What excites you the most at Kehoe Designs?
The freedom to be as creative and innovative as possible.
The backdrop in this video showcases our incredible precision-cut lobby wall panels that were patterned by Erica. “I saw an opportunity to amplify the look of the ornate desk that dominated the space,” she said.
The final result, a collaboration between Kehoe Designs’ artisans, is a strikingly modern take on a rococo design, crafted with different plastic thicknesses over a faux moss background.
Innovative, gorgeous, and entirely unique—how’s that for a front lobby first-impression?_________________________________________________________________________