Elizabeth Allen in " Question Period "

-What is your artistic background?
I have always had an interest in art and experimented for many years with various art forms, watercolours, pastels, sculpture, glass work, etc, but it was not until I tried acrylics on canvas that I felt I had finally found "my" medium. I found the best books I could on the subject and started to paint without really knowing what I was doing. In hindsight, it might have sped things up a bit if I had taken a couple of courses or workshops but I continued to experiment and made lots of mistakes until I really got a feel for what could be done with acrylics.

-How do you describe your work?
The main focus of my work is the play of light on the subject. Most of my paintings are abstracts "based in landscape" but even the pure abstracts will have some sense of light to create visual interest. Colour and composition, of course, are paramount and I do love some texture to pull it all together, using the palette knife to leave small hits of colour which add to the depth of an image.

-Who are the artists you find more interesting?
I greatly admire the work of Turner and Rothko. The colour vibration that both artists achieved by utilizing complementary colours next to each other sets up a visual treat for the eyes. Tanaka's works are always inspiring, I love the feeling of distance and the simplicity of his compositions. He is able to say so much with so little, something that I try to achieve in my paintings. Another contemporary artist I much admire is Edward Betts. His work is so free and fluid, it never fails to inspire me when I am feeling tight or blocked in my own work.

-Should art have a social/political message?
For myself, I do not believe art should necessarily have a social or political message. I am satisfied if I can create something that is visually pleasing to the eye, and perhaps something that stimulates some thought or discussion. I love it when a painting is ambiguous enough that viewers can provide their own interpretation of "what it is".

-Why do you do art?
I paint because, I can not "be" without the act of creating, whether it be a large landscape on canvas or a tiny abstract on an art card, it speaks to the essence of who I am as a person. I can not imagine my life without some sort of creative endeavor and I am very grateful for the ability to share my vision.



www.elizabethallen.ca