Elizabeth Eleanor Davis on her artistic beginnings, process and neighborhood Halloween haunt

Elizabeth Eleanor Davis, a visual artist and proprietor of Black Abbey Studios, described how she moved from experimenting to exhibiting in early 2013, saying: "I painted my very first painting" and that her first showing at City Arts left her "very pleased" and encouraged her to continue.

Vicki Landon, administrator for Orange County's Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs and host of Artfully Orange, asked Davis about the arc of her work. Davis said the subjects and emotional weight of her pieces have stayed consistent even as her technique has improved: "what has evolved over time is, my abilities," she said, noting a persistent interest in high‑realism portraiture combined with collage‑style still life elements.

Davis discussed practical aspects of her practice. She told the program she often relies on reference photography—"I always try my due diligence to source ethical, creative common or take my own"—because she cannot always stage every subject. She said the detailed paintings can be time‑consuming, sometimes taking "four to six weeks to complete," and that she manages mid‑project fatigue by stepping away or leveraging her ADHD‑linked hyperfocus: "my superpower with that is hyperfocus."

Music and community play a formative role in Davis’s work. She said music informs mood and movement in many pieces and that she and her husband host a monthly DJ night called Voyager of Silence (VTS) at Conduit Lounge. Davis also described building an annual neighborhood Halloween home haunt during the pandemic—complete with moving props and a life‑sized sarcophagus—saying the neighborhood children’s reactions "give my little dark heart a lot of joy."

On curation, Davis said she has experimented with series work—citing an early sequence about hope—but that producing many connected works can be a multi‑year commitment because of the detail in each painting. She added that when disparate pieces are hung together, a through line often becomes visible.

Davis invited listeners to find her work online at Black Abbey Studios (www.blackabbeystudios.com) and on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. She also referenced her DJ/event work under names associated with Void Terror Silence / Voyager of Silence and Dark Romantics Orlando and provided an email: theblackabbey@gmail.com.

The interview emphasized Davis’s blend of meticulous technique, musical influences and neighborhood engagement; the episode closed with thanks from Landon and an invitation to follow the artist’s work online.