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Artist information:
Kelly Allen
Grand Rapids, MI

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Kelly Allen is showing at:
The B.O.B. The B.O.B.
20 Monroe Ave Nw
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
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Kelly Allen
Artist bio: Kelly Allen’s intricate drawings and paintings combine animals, graphic elements, and everyday objects to evoke a dreamlike state of curiosity and invention. She urges people to connect with their imaginations and invites others to share their unique interpretations of her work. Kelly recently completed her MFA at Kendall in Drawing and earned her BA in Painting at Humboldt State University in 2003. Kelly is a working artist and illustrator, exhibiting across the country, and is the Assistant Director at Byrneboehm Gallery, where she has been represented since 2003.
Artist statement: A human being is part of the whole universe, though we experience ourselves as separate from the rest. This is a delusion of consciousness, a prison, restricting us to our personal desires. Our task must be to free ourselves from the prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty and obtaining liberation from the self. We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if humanity is to survive.-Albert Einstein
I create connections between diverse subjects by uniting a broad range of imagery into a single image. By researching symbolism from a collection of sources, I broaden my understanding for animals, colors, shapes, etc. Symbols have served people throughout history by giving creative value to the creatures and substance of every day life. I am fascinated with the human compulsion to create personal and cultural meaning in the world, and seek to embrace the truth of wholeness through my work.



About the work:
Title: A Star is a Seed

Art form: 2-D, 3-D

Medium: acrylic on laser cut steel

Year created: 2009

Description of work: I will be creating a painting composed of multiple components with acrylic and oil paint on treated laser cut steel. The work will take up approximately 6 x 8 feet. There is one large central image that will be surrounded by several small components that will hang separately. The imagined, dreamlike image depicts an open-mouthed tiger's head spewing a stream of organic elements, including fruit, a mushroom, animal parts, a human mouth, and a tropical plant. The head is surrounded by various organic, geometric, and manufactured forms, including insect wings, molecules, strips of color, floral forms, human teeth, and several honey bees hovering around the periphery. Each element will be laser cut from a sheet of treated steel, so as to have the form appear to be floating on the wall without the constraints of a canvas or other substrate.
The image will be painted in a very tightly rendered style and appear to be like a very large collage floating on the wall. I can email a sketch.

Work statement: The image is a tribute to the beauty of nature, of color and form, and the limitless depths of the imagination. I refer to the animal and organic images in a symbolic way, like a totem, and use my paintings as opportunities to educate myself about the history of animal and plant symbolism from various cultures. I contemplate notions of unity, synchronicity, and the collective unconscious as I create my works. When the painting is completed, I research the symbolism behind the individual components, and then weave a new interpretation of the work based on the definitions I have collected. My intention for the viewer is to become immersed in the work, focusing on the combination of images, so that they might be distracted, for however long, from the daily obligations and issues of life. It is a goal of mine for all people to become more acquainted with the imaginative aspects of their personalities and to cherish that part of themselves.

Technical details:
Work width: 96 inches
Work height: 72 inches
Work depth: 4 inches
Required venue ceiling: 60 inches
Required venue door height: 60 inches
Required venue door width: 24 inches
Required wall linear footage: 108 ft.
Required venue square footage: 9 sq. ft.
Additional considerations:
Audio/video needed: No
Electrical needed: No
Lighting needed: Yes
Internet access needed: No
Ground floor access needed: No
Indoor space needed: Yes
Outdoor space needed: No

Work Images

Image

Artist resume


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