Allison Bowman
Olathe, KS United States
I am an painter who focuses on abstracted botanical environments. As a Kansas native I grew up surrounded by the Flint Hills. From when I was a child, I remember walks through the Konza Prairie discovering different species of plants. The natural for... More
Artist Statement:
I am an painter who focuses on abstracted botanical environments. As a Kansas native I grew up surrounded by the Flint Hills. From when I was a child, I remember walks through the Konza Prairie discovering different species of plants. The natural forms made by native prairie life are what initially inspired my abstract compositions. Recently I have been studying plant forms from the undergrowth of the Redwood Forest in Northern California.
After graduating from Kansas State University in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in fine art I moved with my husband to the Kansas City area. I currently teach art classes at the Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center in Overland Park, Kansas. Before becoming a teacher, Bowman worked in private art galleries as an assistant curator and preparator.
My multi-layered and elaborate compositions create imagined environments using abstracted botanical forms. The improvisational quality of my painting stems from responses to organic compounds found in nature. These forms are derived from overgrown, uncultivated areas of the forest floor. Gestural shapes and lush color promote analysis over time in these richly dense compositions.
These sacred spaces are manifestations of my journey to the afterlife. Depression and thoughts of suicide are a constant psychological battle. By creating these environments, I have allowed myself to explore spaces of escape; mental and physical. My work persuades myself and my viewers to self-reflect in a time of isolation. We must find out way through the dark foreground to get to the light, much like daily life.
I let the media lead, and then allow response. As I paint, I make conscious and sub-conscious decisions on how to proceed with my layers; almost like terraforming. Painting is a process of letting go and escaping. These spaces become sacred because of their intimacy. Each mark and layer of color is a reaction to the world around me. Adding, subtracting, covering, revealing… the process is one of discovery. These imagined worlds speak to the journey of their own making and to the power and mystery of nature.
After graduating from Kansas State University in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in fine art I moved with my husband to the Kansas City area. I currently teach art classes at the Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center in Overland Park, Kansas. Before becoming a teacher, Bowman worked in private art galleries as an assistant curator and preparator.
My multi-layered and elaborate compositions create imagined environments using abstracted botanical forms. The improvisational quality of my painting stems from responses to organic compounds found in nature. These forms are derived from overgrown, uncultivated areas of the forest floor. Gestural shapes and lush color promote analysis over time in these richly dense compositions.
These sacred spaces are manifestations of my journey to the afterlife. Depression and thoughts of suicide are a constant psychological battle. By creating these environments, I have allowed myself to explore spaces of escape; mental and physical. My work persuades myself and my viewers to self-reflect in a time of isolation. We must find out way through the dark foreground to get to the light, much like daily life.
I let the media lead, and then allow response. As I paint, I make conscious and sub-conscious decisions on how to proceed with my layers; almost like terraforming. Painting is a process of letting go and escaping. These spaces become sacred because of their intimacy. Each mark and layer of color is a reaction to the world around me. Adding, subtracting, covering, revealing… the process is one of discovery. These imagined worlds speak to the journey of their own making and to the power and mystery of nature.
Education:
BFA at Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas
Awards & Distinctions:
2nd Place Award, Women In The Arts Juried Exhibition
Jim Hagan Art Department Scholarship, Kansas State University
Kansas State University Art Department Student Scholarship
Honorable Mention, 7th Annual University Life Café Juried Exhibition
Col. Edwin T Rhatigan, USA and Mrs. Marcella D. Rhatigan Designated Scholarship, Kansas State University
Jim Hagan Art Department Scholarship, Kansas State University
Kansas State University Art Department Student Scholarship
Honorable Mention, 7th Annual University Life Café Juried Exhibition
Col. Edwin T Rhatigan, USA and Mrs. Marcella D. Rhatigan Designated Scholarship, Kansas State University
Professional/Teaching Experience:
2018-Present, Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center, Teaching Artist: Pre-K through Adult
Exhibitions:
Solo Exhibitions
2019
Sacred Spaces, Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center, Overland Park, Kansas
Origins, Campanella Gallery, Park University, Parkville, Missouri
Group Exhibitions
2019
Art Mingle, Meadowlark Hills Retirement Home, Manhattan, Kansas
Women In The Arts, Paper Birch Landing, Kansas City, Missouri
KCAC Arts Auction Fundraiser, Kansas City Artist Coalition, Kansas City, Missouri
2018
One Night Stand, Kansas City Artists Coalition, Kansas City, Missouri
Now Showing Program, Bank of Blue Valley, Overland Park, Kansas
Now Showing Program, Deloitte, Kansas City, Missouri
Westport Art Fair
New Botanicals, Potter Gallery
Art at the Center Juried Show, Tomahawk Ridge Community Center
Voyage, Vanessa Lacy Gallery
Elements, Vanessa Lacy Gallery
KCAC Arts Auction Fundraiser, Kansas City Arts Coalition
Flora, Vanessa Lacy Gallery
Things Bright and Beautiful, Strecker Nelson West Gallery
2017
Small Works Show, Vanessa Lacy Gallery
BFA Exhibition, Mark A. Chapman Gallery, Kansas State University
10th Annual University Life Café Juried Exhibition, William T. Kemper Gallery
Inflorescence, William T. Kemper Gallery, Kansas State University
9th Annual University Life Café Juried Exhibition, William T. Kemper Gallery, Kansas State University
Commerce Bank Juried Exhibition, Commerce Bank
Art Department Student Scholarship Juried Exhibition, Mark A. Chapman Gallery
2015
Commerce Bank Juried Art Exhibition, Commerce Bank, Manhattan, KS, Mariana Kistler Museum of Art
7th Annual University Life Café Juried Exhibition, William T. Kemper Gallery
2019
Sacred Spaces, Johnson County Arts and Heritage Center, Overland Park, Kansas
Origins, Campanella Gallery, Park University, Parkville, Missouri
Group Exhibitions
2019
Art Mingle, Meadowlark Hills Retirement Home, Manhattan, Kansas
Women In The Arts, Paper Birch Landing, Kansas City, Missouri
KCAC Arts Auction Fundraiser, Kansas City Artist Coalition, Kansas City, Missouri
2018
One Night Stand, Kansas City Artists Coalition, Kansas City, Missouri
Now Showing Program, Bank of Blue Valley, Overland Park, Kansas
Now Showing Program, Deloitte, Kansas City, Missouri
Westport Art Fair
New Botanicals, Potter Gallery
Art at the Center Juried Show, Tomahawk Ridge Community Center
Voyage, Vanessa Lacy Gallery
Elements, Vanessa Lacy Gallery
KCAC Arts Auction Fundraiser, Kansas City Arts Coalition
Flora, Vanessa Lacy Gallery
Things Bright and Beautiful, Strecker Nelson West Gallery
2017
Small Works Show, Vanessa Lacy Gallery
BFA Exhibition, Mark A. Chapman Gallery, Kansas State University
10th Annual University Life Café Juried Exhibition, William T. Kemper Gallery
Inflorescence, William T. Kemper Gallery, Kansas State University
9th Annual University Life Café Juried Exhibition, William T. Kemper Gallery, Kansas State University
Commerce Bank Juried Exhibition, Commerce Bank
Art Department Student Scholarship Juried Exhibition, Mark A. Chapman Gallery
2015
Commerce Bank Juried Art Exhibition, Commerce Bank, Manhattan, KS, Mariana Kistler Museum of Art
7th Annual University Life Café Juried Exhibition, William T. Kemper Gallery
Artistic Influences:
Joan Mitchell, Lilian Garcia-Roig, Claude Monet
Artist Tags:
botanical, floral, environment, plants, whimsical, fantastical
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