My art is an expression of my lived experiences. My sketches and photos taken on my travels are recreated in paint in the hopes that I can capture the moments that fascinated me in a way that fascinates others. I am inspired by nature, particularly small things and patterns in nature. My palette tends toward bright colors.
I’ve been drawing and painting since age seven when I found my uncle’s sketchbook of Disney characters. I studied art history and studio art at the University of Florida, where I received a B.A. in History of Art. I later attended the Art Institute in Colorado to study multi-media design. My path turned to web and graphic design and later to public relations writing and marketing communications. I’ve always equally enjoyed creative writing, poetry, philosophy, literature and art.
Over the years, I worked for large corporations while continuing to create and sell acrylic paintings. Recently, I’ve returned to working in oil. In the spring of 2023, I began studying under the painter Patti M. Shistle. I am grateful for her mentorship and guidance. Patti is a masterful oil painter and portraitist.
It doesn’t matter if it takes a long time getting there; the point is to have a destination.
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My previous works were primarily of Colorado and Florida landscapes, and the flora and fauna of these states. But I also paint people and places that have left indelible marks on me. I still write for corporations, though after the tenor of the world changed in 2020, I focus more on my own writings (both non-fiction and creative) and my art. I am working on launching a Substack of my writings on cultural commentary, art history and philosophy. This site (poetics) will house my latest art and my essays on art. As I am shifting to oil and developing paintings for a fall show, I plan to add more paintings on this site later this year.
My fine art influences are Albrecht Dürer, Martin Johnson Heade, Frederick Church, The Florida Highwaymen, Louis Comfort Tiffany, John Singer Sargent, Leonardo (who doesn’t love Leonardo?); and, most recently, Pino Daeni. And, of course, Patti Shistle.
I am a representational artist and love early American portrait and landscape painters (18th C. and early 19th C.). I particularly enjoy the Luminists and anything from the Jazz Age. I believe art is a science and one never stops learning who studies a science.
Recent Group Exhibitions
CityArts, Downtown Arts District (Orlando), Edgar Allan Poe Prize Exhibition (Annabel Lee, oil), November 16-December 17, 2023)
Canon Coffee (Apopka, Florida), 10 pieces in group exhibit with artist Cassandra Brown (October 1-30, 2023)
CityArts, Downtown Arts District (Orlando) “Art in Flowers” show (Patti’s Flowers, oil), August 2023
42nd Annual Student Exhibition at Crealdé School of Art (First Prize in Painting & Drawing category; Portrait of an Artist, oil), June 2023
Awards
42nd Annual Student Exhibition at Crealdé School of Art (First Prize in Painting & Drawing category; Portrait of an Artist, oil, June 2023)
Creative Hub of Apopka Plein Air competition (First Prize, Magnolia Park, oil, June 2023)
To contact me, email ataylorpen -at- gmail.com.
Best regards,
Allison Taylor
{a whimsical, early work}