Observations

Good Day!

Here's another edition to my creative exercises on paper, "Observations". I really love this piece, it has an Oceanic theme to it. It fulls of blues, bubbles and mixed media. These art pieces I am sharing with you daily are raw, unedited, and messy at times.

It a mixed media piece as well. I so would love for you to see this piece, it's really something special to me. By the way, I do ship International Direct for all my art lovers overseas! I'd love to get my art sold over the world, what a nice thought and compliment! Help me by sharing my art to your European friends.
Thank you.

To see it and purchase it, click: Observations

Wander.

If you saw my last post, I wrote about a recent creative exercise and how much I enjoyed it. So, I decided many months later, you might want to see these little works of art on paper.

They are raw, not clean edges, but you will see splatter of paint on the edges, the margins are uneven. Again, raw works of creative ideas of words, images, symbols and graphics. 

I also decided to not only to share these with you and their processes, but perhaps there might be one you are drawn to and would like to have.

I have listed these little works of art on eBay (my husband and I have an eBay store: Mike & Ally's Haul Ya'll eBay Store. I have them listed for the same price, but you can make me an offer if you like. 

And if you love Vintage Items like we do, you find a few of those.

Follow my blog for each update for these new artworks on paper like this art piece. Click on the word Wander to see this painting. Hope you enjoy these little works of art!

See it here: Wander

Media: Mixed Media

Seafood Foodies:The Claw

Hello,
I hope you enjoyed "Cherokee Girls" and "Moccasins" paintings from the last two posts. I decided to go in a different direction, something for fun. And look where I ended up. Painting a colorful crab claw on black background. 

There's something so simple and freeing using the black background. It's as if it speaks for itself. And what about that pose of the claw? Demanding a little respect wouldn't you say? Yes, any pincher like that will definitely demand one's respect.

Anyway, I like it's stately pose as if it's was showing off it's vibrant shell of colors.

So here's "The Claw":

"The Claw"

6" x 6" (square)

Acrylic

Vellum Paper

Hope you enjoyed "The Claw", there's no telling what I'll paint next. Come back and see what's next.

What do you think? Like the black background? Like to see more of this?

Thanks for visiting, Allison.  

           

Art Collectors: The Moment That Causes One to Pause

Have you ever had that moment when you looked up at the sky after a storm and saw an unexpected break in the clouds that caused you to pause, to stand in awe? This painting represents that moment with the leftover remnants of a storm's dark clouds, while the light of the sunset is beginning to peak through. 

Now about the actual making of this painting, I decided to used a warm and cool palette for contrast. I love to blend colors and here I did quite a bit of blending to create soft look against the striking sky. There is something very soothing about blending paint or dry brushing, it's definitely therapeutic.You might want to try it sometime. This painting is a very wide canvas (40") with intense colors of blues, reds, pink, oranges, olive green, and tan. It starts with soft warm colors and and you do down the painting you see the cool palette colors that lend that look of dark skies from a previous storm. 

Perhaps this painting would look lovely over a fireplace mantle, or in a dining room, or even an office? I have to admit this is one of my favorites I have done so far, due to it's dramatic value. Let me know if you are drawn to this painting. I appreciate the feedback!

    A Break In The Clouds

30"(tall) x 40"(wide) x 1" (deep)

Acrylic

(U. S. Shipping Only, due to width)

Close Up View 1

  Close Up View 2

Close Up View 3

                                                     

ABOUT THE ARTIST:

Allison Reece is an abstract expressionist painter from Asheville, NC. She has been selling her bold paintings since 2004. She is an alumnus of Ringling College of Art & Design, in Sarasota, FL, where she studied Fine Arts. Currently, she is enrolled through Northwestern University’s Social Media Marketing Course, via the Coursera website. She enjoys spending time with her husband and daughter, a good cup of coffee, kayaking in the southeastern intracoastal waterways, and long walks on the beach. Her favorite color is turquoise and she loves abstract art.

You can follow Allison on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Fine Art America, and Instagram.

 

His Thoughts

Welcome!
I'm working with a little different color palette since my last two paintings. This painting came suddenly and easily. The paint colors are bold, bright, and the paints are slick, glossy looking.

 "His Thoughts"

36" x 24"

Mixed Media

Gallery Wrapped Canvas

BUY

Close Up View

Another Close Up View

Last Close Up View

BUY

Now, what do you think? Do you like this color palette? Would you like to see more in this style?

"Lost Landscape with Broken Joy"

I'm back!
Just when you thought it was safe....oh no, she's returned with another wild painting!
Okay, sorry, so I couldn't think of a better opening line.  


Here's the other smaller painting I wanted to show you inspired from the series of postcard paintings in the Twitter Art Exhibit.
Let's see what you think.

"Lost Landscape with Broken Joy"

24" x 18" x 1.2"

Acrylic

Canvas

Lost Landscape with Broken Joy

Cost: $250.00 USD

Close up View

Another Close up View

You can see this one has lots of texture, a very rugged look. 

Next painting will be with a totally different painting and style. 

Now, what do you think of  "Lost Landscape with Broken Joy"? 

A Creative Explosion: Raw Energy

Hello!
I really liked how the last two postcard paintings looked for the Twitter Art Exhibit. So, I decided to make two more paintings with the same color palette for a larger canvas and a small canvas. This gives my collectors the opportunities to choose from two different sizes in this style of paintings. In my painting process, I use palette knifes of different sizes to create textures and layering colors on top of other colors. I like these bold color choices, hope you do as well. I adore color and it's relationships to other colors. This is why I am a color expressionist. Do these colors excite you? Inspire you? Or simply delight you? Enjoy.

Here's one of the paintings. I'll show you the smaller painting in the next blog post.

"Raw Energy"

36" x 24"

Acrylic

Canvas 
Sold!

Close Up View

 Another Close Up View 

See slight textures and colors peeking through

Last Close Up View

 

What you do think? Do you like this painting? And don't forget, I have another painting in this same style coming up in my next post. Please retweet or email this post with your friends or family! Thank you, Allison.

Do You Surrender To Your Art Journey? Part 2

Hello!
I was so delighted by the intriguing responses from my first post of "Do You Surrender To Your Art Journey" that it's requiring a part 2! I definitely want to continue this conversation and hope if you're game, I am. 


First of all, to recap the post if you haven't read it, I was basically saying how I was trying to go deeper with my art, to the point where something else happens. It's as if the paint becomes "alive" if you will, and takes over and I give it the room to move as it may. No longer do I have an agenda, but I watch to see what the paint wants to do, where it wants to go. I'm no longer the frustrated artist, because my plans didn't get executed as I expected, but the art said, let me take YOU where I want to go. The journey has surely been more interesting. I have had new experiences, I doubt I wouldn't have had before. And I'm seeing new surprises right before my eyes, especially when I walk away and come back to the painting, as if the painting fairies showed up and finished the painting. Crazy, I know. 


Here are a few of the comments I've received, including this one from my Twitter friend @Peteshootspix: "Often, I 'allow' an image to go where it will when in Photoshop. Then arises the question, who or what is creating the art?". Oh, I just loved that, good one Pete! 


One artist on Google Plus, Kris Schirmer, wanted to know what I thought of her statement, "Art Objects Are Living  Beings" in which she wanted to have a discussion exchange. I'm still contemplating that one. But yes, I do think there is energy embedded in one's art.


Another artist, Susan commented, "drawings were as if she mediating". An excellent perspective.


You can find plenty of trained artists in the world. In fact, in art school, they know they can teach anyone to draw. There are the basics, the techniques one can learn to draw and draw well. But when an artist can "move" you emotionally in their art and create such positive ripples in the world, anhe energy is happening. You can attain head knowledge of how to draw or paint, but once you surrender after the techniques of knowledge are applied, then hopefully, something incredible happens. I think those are the artists that stand out from the pack. It's no longer just about the artist, but the "creative force" that takes over. Okay, so that's about as profound as I get, but I am going to leave you with two artists  interviews that have experienced more as an artist than myself from youtube. Hope you enjoy them, Allison.


An inside look at abstract impressionist artist Kathryn Henneman, her studio and her artwork.

Learn about the technique and philosophy of artist Linde B. Martin. See her amazing artwork. 

Do You Surrender To Your Art Journey? Part 1

I want to say, "Thank you!" to everyone that has been validating my newest Intuitive Series. It's been good to finally give myself the freedom and opportunity to go where I've never gone before with my art. Yes, the final frontier. Sorry, I had to say it. You knew that was coming, right? Anyhow, I was talking with a very talented artist in our River Arts District here in Asheville. He was explaining the process of his wonderful paintings and I was doing the same. As I was sharing about my new project, making my art in a more intuitive fashion, he made an interesting comment. As crazy as some may think it is, I told him how I was allowing the paint to show me where it was to go. In other words, letting go of the self talk of the Left brain and trying to shut it down, giving the Right brain creativity to take over. And whatever happens, happens. He totally understood and said, "Surrendering to the painting." I said, "Yes, exactly!". Now as silly as some people might think that is...it really doesn't matter, because we artists know something bigger than ourselves takes places, once we surrender to the process. Finally, after many years of planning my art, trying to figure it out, and wearing myself out doing so, I've let go and surrendered to it. 


Now the work is improving, new styles are emerging and I'm not "the frustrated artist" any more. For me, this is a big deal and I can hardly wait to see where this creative process takes me and my art. I do hope you will continue to follow this journey, the stories behind the paintings, and the art itself.


Back to this painting, " Our Planet Earth". This one took some time to make and plenty of paint. I thought I would step out of my boundaries with color and add color choices I normally wouldn't, such as olive. I'm just not an olive person, the color or the food. I have always been fascinated by the images NASA would take from their telescopes and this painting reminds me of those images. How small it make me feel when I see photos of Earth and knowing the universe is so vast... The details of this painting are so neat and I'm not sure the photographs will show them off. 

"Our Planet Earth"

Acrylic

24" x 2o" x 1/2"

Close Up View 1 - the darker sections with

blues, olive,yellow golds, reds

Close Up View of the purples  and whites

Another Close Up View 

Side View where the paint runs nicely over the edges.

Now, what do you see in this painting?

Sunset Swim in the Gulf

Lately, I've been looking forward to each blank canvas. It is amazing when you are mixing and working with paints what can happen next.  Even though I bring the paints to the canvas, it's as if the canvas paints itself. I've been rather amazed by this process, working more intuitively. First, I'm mixing paints and deciding what colors to use. Then as I add them to the canvas, I watch the colors, designs, and textures begin their dance, swirling around. Painting is still an amazing process  and I have to take my eyes off of the canvas from time to time to focus on the mixing. When I return to the painting, I begin to see things I didn't see before or didn't appear on the canvas until I walked away. As I pour paint onto the canvas, it becomes a mesmerizing dance, watching it run down and mix into other shades that start to swirl. It's almost like watching a colorful science experiment on canvas. The science of gravity and color ruling over what I can command it to do. What begins to look like an accident turns into a beautiful move of the paint. It's as if it were saying to me, "No, I know of a better place to go on this canvas. I want to go over here". Now, I say back to it, "Okay, go where you may". And it shows off again, saying, "I told you so." And reminds me, "Just let me take the lead." 


For now, the paint is in control. No forceful brushstrokes, or calculated judgements, just sliding and gliding rolls of the paint here and there. There are no mistakes, just a better awareness of where the paint wants to go. 


So, I hope you are enjoying color's show. It's showing off just for you. Let me introduce to you, 

"Sunset Swim in the Gulf"

20' x 20"x 1"

Acrylic

Click Here To Buy!

Close Up

Another Close Up View

Another Close Up View of the Colors

Click Here to Buy!

That First Embrace

If you remember, I'm presently working in a more intuitive fashion with this next series of abstract paintings. Trying different techniques to see what comes out of me. To hold nothing back and relax, as the old saying goes, "Let it all hang out, Baby". This time, saying no to that critical voice before it speaks up and stirs the pot. This experimental process stops me from coming to the blank canvas with a preconceived idea, but rather come in an experimental mode of right brain thinking and be surprised by the results. Naturally, some simple editing near the end is necessary, but not at the beginning of the process or during the middle. Just a little adding of more colors here and there, and then STOP!

I've noticed the process of painting goes a little faster and frees me creatively in great strides more than ever before. I've been technically trained in art, so it's been hard for me to put that left brain training aside and just paint intuitively. 

Honestly, I'm more pleased with my work and hope this trend continues. This painting process, required lots of paint and is very messy, since I'm throwing paint at times. I did this outdoors with a plastic drop cloth on the ground, basically, marbling paint throughout the canvas until I get the desired effects. I wish you could see the details in person, up close. I like it, and I hope you do. I've got another one coming in the same style as this one. In this painting, I see the experience of embrace when a man meets a woman. Reminds me of when I first met my husband, Mike. He got out of the car, right away his hand raised his baseball cap off of his head and he threw his arms wide open towards me for a hug. I knew then, I was "hooked". The rest is history. Now, when I asked my husband what he saw in the painting, he said, "Smurfs in a blender!". Oh well, so much for the romance dept. Maybe, next time. I'm just have to settle for the embrace for now.

That's what's happening in my studio. Feel free to comment, I love hearing from you. And again, this painting and others are listed on eBay for purchase. Thanks for "visiting". Stay tuned for the next painting in this series of intuitive paintings.

Allison

P.S. My brilliant husband also said, I'd probably get more views on eBay if I give the painting his title. You know what, sadly, he's probably right. 

"The Embrace"

36" x 24" 

Acrylic

Click Here To Bid!

Close Up

Click Here To Bid!

Then Came Turquoise

So what's on the easel for today, you ask? Well, I'll be happy to show you. Something fun. I'm presently working on a new intuitive series. Basically, the process of this painting is this, I paint layers of color and I use a scraper (the fun part) and move the paint where I want it to go. Then I see the interesting colors that form and the movement of the paint. At times, I literally squeeze out paint from the tubes onto the canvas to get that punch of color right where I want it. Some areas of paint are scraped away and some are left behind. I go through large amounts of paint, but the look is worth it. This is a very large painting

Hope you like, "Then Came Turquoise". It came to show off.

"Then Came Turquoise"

40" x 30"

Acrylic

Gallery wrapped canvas

 Close Up 

Another Close Up View