The Sayers Club, Prince, Alison Van Pelt Paintings, Jason Scoppa

Alison Van Pelt paintings at The Sayers Club. They've been the backdrop for Stevie Wonder, The Black Keys, Gotye, and so many more. This is the Prince show October, 2012.

Silver Horse, oil on canvas, 4ft x 5ft, Alison Van Pelt, Gigi and Cash, photo: Cari Bagdonas

Silver Horse, oil on canvas, 4ft x 5ft, Alison Van Pelt

Silver Horse, oil on canvas, 5ft x 4ft, Alison Van Pelt, Ochi Gallery

Silver Horse, oil on canvas, 5ft x 4ft, Alison Van Pelt

Silver Horse, oil on canvas, Alison Van Pelt ,photo by Cari Bagdonas

Silver Horse, oil on canvas, 4ft x 5ft, Alison Van Pelt

Silver Horse, oil on canvas, 4ft x 5ft, Alison Van Pelt

Ochi Gallery studio visit

Ochi Gallery studio visit

Ochi Gallery studio visit

Ochi Gallery studio visit

Ochi Gallery studio visit

GLAMOUR SQUAW, Alison Van Pelt Paintings

GLAMOUR SQUAW 

http://www.glamoursquaw.com/post/36579421278/fabulous-paintings-by-alison-van-pelt

FABULOUS: Paintings by Alison Van Pelt

Confession: All I want for Christmas is this painting by Alison Van Pelt.  It haunts me.
But who am I kidding? Every one of her paintings is seriously divine.  I’d take any of them!

From her famously haunting nudes to her Native Americans, animals, and more recent work from the “If I Were Ed Ruscha” series (like the one of Frida Kahlo above), Van Pelt has a way with the brush that strikes a delicate balance between ethereal and boldly powerful.
A true 1970’s California girl, Van Pelt’s painstaking photorealist style is tied to the influx of photography into the art world and is inspired by disparate influences such as Chuck Close, Robert Rauschenberg, Gerhard Richter, Helmut Newton, Paramahansa Yogananda, Dan Millman, and Hunter S. Thompson.  It’s a powerful mix and something that is oddly tangible in her work. The canvases range in size from less than 8x10 inches to over 8x10 feet and are currently held by some of the most important art collectors and institutions in the world.

Here’s a little peek into her world……….
What is your creative process?
It’s a recurring marathon. I draw an image on canvas (or board, glass,
paper…) Then I paint, depending on the size of the piece, for a few
hours or a few days. I paint an image and once the image is complete, I blur the paint while the paint is wet. With a big piece this can take between 24 and 48 hours,
non-stop, non-sleep, until the paint is too dry to blend anymore. Then
I take a hot bath and in a perfect world, get a massage, a good meal
and a long sleep. That last bit is a vital component of the process.


Who has been the most influential person in your life?
My mom, Susan. She said I was a great artist and could do anything I
put my mind to. That’s a powerful message I heard when I was very
young and even when it’s not all green lights, I never questioned it.

What’s the most important education in your life (traditional or
self-education) and why?
I went to great schools - UCLA, Otis, Art Center and Florence Academy
of Art. But I did best alone, experimenting, making mistakes; that’s
when I’ve had my biggest leaps.

What serendipitous events brought you to your current career?
A great collector bought my first painting when I was 21. It seemed so easy.

What is your best attribute?
Patience and concentration.

What is your biggest flaw?
Procrastination.

Who do you admire most?
Frida Kahlo, Georgia O’Keefe, Ethel Kennedy,
RFK, JFK, Martin Luther King Jr, Hilary Clinton, Barack Obama!

Who would you would most like to meet?
Paramahansa Yogananda, Babaji, and my next husband.

Who is your favorite artist and why?
Frida Kahlo. Aside from her determination and strength, she could directly paint her dreams and raw emotion and make it beautiful, powerful and enchanting. In
contrast, Gerhard Richter, for his irony, intellect, and rigorous,
methodical, devoted practice and mastery of the paint.

Who is your favorite musician and why?
I have to pick three:  Rolling Stones, Beatles, Led Zepplin. Always
and forever - the soundtrack from my wild, magical, innocent youth.

What are you reading right now?
Upper Cut by Carrie White and Rebels in Paradise, The Los Angeles Art
Scene and the 60’s, by Hunter Drohojowska-Philp. Both great!

What element of nature is most enchanting to you and why?
I love the woods by the sea - that’s the fantasy. I know, greedy; I
want two. I live at the beach and there’s a sense that the intensity
of the city is balanced by all that vast space.

What is your most defining life philosophy?
Peace and love. I was raised by hippies. It was always live and let
live, but I’m becoming
more outspoken and a little more courageous about standing up for
things; less need to make nice, not so scared to make waves.

Well, Ms. Van Pelt, you’re definitely making waves for all of us who love your work!
An excellent variety of work by Alison Van Pelt can be found through Roseark in West Hollywood and Santa Monica.
xoxo GS

Woman, oil on canvas, 1992, Alison Van Pelt

Designer Martyn Lawrence - Bullard's office, Alison Van Pelt painting, Donald Sultan smoke Rings, Warhol.

White Horse, oil on canvas, Aspen Art Museum, Alison Van Pelt

L.A. Centric Magazine, L.A. Art, Alison Van Pelt Paintings

For the past 30 years, I have been preoccupied with the act of painting. For most of this time, I have been captivated by the blurring of paint. I like to streak it to imply motion, or finesse the paint until the image is hidden a bit, or drag the brush aggressively until the image is almost obliterated. My favorite blur, the gentle, steady, repetitive blur, seeks to create the illusion of a tangible, three-dimensional apparition, like a hologram. Because this result is not always achieved, and because the pursuit of this enterprise can be strenuous, and must be meticulous, it is important to find joy in the process of painting. The blur has become more than a means to an end. I love to watch the paint change as the brush passes over it. It is mesmerizing to watch an image gradually develop and reshape. I am comforted by the repetition of brush strokes and entranced by the transformation of colors and textures. While the conclusion of a painting may not be the realization of the desired objective, I find that the more time I spend immersed in the practice of painting, the more I come to value the act of painting itself.

L.A. Art, L.A. Centric Magazine, Alison Van Pelt

For the past 30 years, I have been preoccupied with the act of painting. For most of this time, I have been captivated by the blurring of paint. I like to streak it to imply motion, or finesse the paint until the image is hidden a bit, or drag the brush aggressively until the image is almost obliterated. My favorite blur, the gentle, steady, repetitive blur, seeks to create the illusion of a tangible, three-dimensional apparition, like a hologram. Because this result is not always achieved, and because the pursuit of this enterprise can be strenuous, and must be meticulous, it is important to find joy in the process of painting. The blur has become more than a means to an end. I love to watch the paint change as the brush passes over it. It is mesmerizing to watch an image gradually develop and reshape. I am comforted by the repetition of brush strokes and entranced by the transformation of colors and textures. While the conclusion of a painting may not be the realization of the desired objective, I find that the more time I spend immersed in the practice of painting, the more I come to value the act of painting itself.

L.A. Centric Magazine, Oct 2012, L.A. Art, Alison Van Pelt Paintings

For the past 30 years, I have been preoccupied with the act of painting. For most of this time, I have been captivated by the blurring of paint. I like to streak it to imply motion, or finesse the paint until the image is hidden a bit, or drag the brush aggressively until the image is almost obliterated. My favorite blur, the gentle, steady, repetitive blur, seeks to create the illusion of a tangible, three-dimensional apparition, like a hologram. Because this result is not always achieved, and because the pursuit of this enterprise can be strenuous, and must be meticulous, it is important to find joy in the process of painting. The blur has become more than a means to an end. I love to watch the paint change as the brush passes over it. It is mesmerizing to watch an image gradually develop and reshape. I am comforted by the repetition of brush strokes and entranced by the transformation of colors and textures. While the conclusion of a painting may not be the realization of the desired objective, I find that the more time I spend immersed in the practice of painting, the more I come to value the act of painting itself.