Menu
The New Contemporary Art Magazine

The Textured Paintings of Allison Schulnik

Allison Schulnik’s textured paintings move between stirring and ominous scenes and more surreal characters. The denseness of her process gives her paintings a sculptural quality. Study of each work reveals several layers and intrigue.

Allison Schulnik’s textured paintings move between stirring and ominous scenes and more surreal characters. The denseness of her process gives her paintings a sculptural quality. Study of each work reveals several layers and intrigue.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bb3zMUZDu0y/

“I paint rejects, misfits and their landscapes,” the artist has said. “My fixation on these characters is not intended to exploit deficiencies, but to find valor in adversity. Whether hobo clowns, misshapen animals or scarecrows, they are usually built upon a human frame, often times the frame of myself, loved ones and sometimes people I have never met, which at times give them an awkward humanity. Drawing from film, music, cartoons, dance, I like to blend earthly fact, blatant fiction to form a stage of tragedy, farce, and raw, ominous beauty – at times capturing otherworld buffoonery, and other times presenting a simple earthly dignified moment.”

See more of the artist’s work below.

Meta
Share
Facebook
Reddit
Pinterest
Email
Related Articles
Amy Casey is known for her paintings of miniature towns with teeny suburban houses and buildings, many of which are modeled after the ones she comes across in her adopted hometown of Cleveland. Rendered in incredible detail, her tiny structures are stacked like building blocks and teeter on stilts at anxiety-inducing heights. Connecting these delicate communities are maddening networks of highways and cables, and while people are visibly absent from the picture, there is no doubt that these microcosms are brimming with life and nervous energy. We featured her work in Hi-Fructose Vol. 5 and on the blog here and here.
Kit Mizeres creates vibrant gouache and watercolor works packed with surreal elements and influences. An artist and illustrator "living on the road," both Mizeres and her work travels the country for shows and projects.
Mernet Larsen's paintings shift perspectives and reimagine our world in a manner that recalls early computer-generated modeling. Offering both corporate and domestic environments, the acrylic and mixed-media works both convey the humanity of these scenes and remixes their contents. Larsen was last mentioned on HiFructose.com here.
Yellena James explores a wildly flourishing imaginary ecosystem in her solo show "Radiance," opening at LeQuiVive Gallery in Oakland on January 10. While paintings of flowers are traditionally on the tame side, James's work is far-removed from your average still life. Her flat, stylized flora explodes from every corner of each piece. The brightly colored, biomorphic shapes are ambiguous and suggestive, sometimes even overwhelmingly energetic. James draws and paints them in combinations of acrylic, marker, and ink, inviting a playful dance of various textures. "Radiance" will include a site-specific mural at the gallery, as well.

Subscribe to the Hi-Fructose Mailing List