Meet Alison Press

Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours? 
I have always loved art and I have sketched or done small watercolor paintings throughout my life. I began painting in earnest 13 years ago. I cut out an article from from the AJC in 2001 about a folk school in North Carolina that looked wonderful. I wrote away for the catalogue and started looking for a class on art or painting. In 2005 I finally took a week-long painting class at John C Campbell Folk School in Brasstown North Carolina. I had a fabulous painting instructor  who emphasized abstraction as a way to keep paintings alive. After a week of focusing only on abstract art I was bitten by the acrylic painting bug ! As I look back on my earlier works they were not too good, but I learned tons, found my passion and I was hooked. I have painted continuously since then, and have taken steps to keep my painting practice going while still working in a non- art career full time. I turned  a bonus room in my house into a dedicated art studio, attended painting workshops and art colonies throughout the Southeast, and began selling my paintings in galleries and shops,  by commission, as well as participating in exhibits in the metro Atlanta area. Over the past decade  I have also taken half a dozen additional classes from that same initial art teacher, who is now a dear friend and mentor.  Through these experiences and other art adventures in clay and sculpture,  I now have a wonderful network of supportive art friends from across the country! My body of work has grown as well. I started off doing mostly landscapes and figurative works, and I now paint nonobjective and expressive abstracts. Most recently my art journey has come full circle,  as this past Spring I had the honor to serve as an assistant instructor in an abstract painting class at the same Folk School where I learned to paint.

Please tell us about your art.
The past several months I have been working  on a new abstract flower series. These are paintings created on top quality watercolor paper using mixed media techniques and painting mediums.  Most of these paintings have layers of marks and paint built -up by using art pencils, charcoal, watercolors, acrylic paint, acrylic markers, and oil pastels. I go with the “ more is more” theory of layering and color use to expose the final product. My inspiration for these paintings is the bountiful clematis vine growing in my backyard. The looping and intertwined branches have terrific movement. The buds and large blossoms pop out of these vines, here and there, all across the old metal arbor. Layering and swirling and abstracting these vines and flowers into paintings have been a joyful exercise. Of course, I use lots of “artistic license ” on the shapes, colors, tones, and the subject itself. As you look at these paintings, which  I refer to as my “ fractured flowers” series, you don’t necessarily come away “seeing” a clematis vine or anything floral. What I create is the movement and moment, not the literal flower. That is how I create art. It is a dance, a poem, but presented on paper or canvas. Paint is my medium for communication and sharing.

As an artist, how do you define success and what quality or characteristic do you feel is essential to success as an artist?
As an artist, I view my role as a creator. I create visual images, in the form of either abstract or nonobjective paintings, and it is the viewer, the receiver of these images that consumes these creations. In that way, the role of the artist in this time is the same as it has been with the earliest known creators of art, starting with cave art. The message is a visual one. It was thousands of years ago when an early man, or woman, marked cave walls with animal images for hunting or spiritual worship. Through the art created centuries ago for great cathedrals to spread a message of religion, to today, when traditional art galleries and more so online sites such as Facebook or Instagram have art images that convey thousands of different expressions and visual messages across the world, I believe the role of the artist remains the  same- to create. That is the value of art to create something new and bring it into the world to share . Success is to create art that stirs emotion  or attention just by existing. For me a successful painting is something made with my head, my heart, my hands that elicits  a emotional reaction in others. That is success.

Of course, I am impacted by all things around me- pop culture, politics, international events, and my own life and relationship with these outside forces and with people in my life. My artwork and portfolio is therefore always evolving. My thoughts, feelings, emotions, and experiences all are present as I create. You don’t put these aside when you paint. It’s these layers of experiences that form an artist and that artists’ unique vision. I paint, and I speak through these paintings. As with any human interaction, sometimes what is “said ” versus what is “heard ” may not be the same. And that is perfectly fine. Art is interpretive. I am pleased when someone enjoys viewing my artwork, but my message is there regardless. That personal excitement and sense of awe in creating something new to share with others is the quality I embrace that is essential for my success as an artist, a painter. I love the painting process!

How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
I have an online presence now for my paintings. People can view all my paintings and also purchase them through the web via Facebook or Instagram, or my website. I am still in the process of cataloging all  my work, so new paintings appear all the time. I also have an art studio in the historic section of downtown Roswell. That is open by appointment only.