Sandra Allen

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Biography

Allen’s focus is on natural elements including the bark of trees. The show includes one of her super-sized drawings entitled Ballast. Ballast is a high contrast vivification of a portion of a tree trunk. The multiple levels of scale on which Allen is able to create intrigue are staggering, and engage the viewer in a complex network of detail.

Exhibitions

Dedee Shattuck Gallery | May 1 - 28, 2013 | Zaria Forman, Sandra Allen and Huguette May

Artist Statement

"Images of trees, the trunks and dormant branches, became the subject of my drawings in 1998. The minimal yet intricate trunks and branches often elicit an iconic presence that speaks metaphorically of life, the capacity to withstand challenges and the desire to continue on. The drawings are made in graphite on paper often at a large scale. On the two dimensional surface I am trying to empower the work with a sculptural presence. Through scale, attention to surface texture and the play of light over form, the graphite takes on a materiality more akin to paint than pencil. The slow process of creating the drawings, building up marks on a page, mimics in time the physical growth of the trees themselves and captures the expanse of time on paper." - Sandra Allen, 2013