ARTIST STATEMENT

"Statement on the Nature of Study:  Each painting and drawing is a study unto itself as well as a study for the next. The mechanics of a painting or drawing is being studied as much as the subject of the work. My work is the study of life, the elements of life, and the function of artist materials. In life each object has a specific function and each moment is a reaction to the last. The same can be said for the artist's mark and decisions. The decision to paint or draw has its own unique purpose and each mark is always at the mercy of the previous. I don't see a landscape different from a still life; they are simply what I have experienced. The air of a landscape or the light of a room often determines what medium I choose. Inevitably that choice will lead to a new study. This collection of work explores exclusively my home and its immediate surroundings. At times these works are deeply routed in personal traditions and experiences. Much of the work from past two years explores the implied elements of the subject. The purpose of these works is not to tell my life story but to allow the events of my life be a metaphor for human experience."   M. Allen 2005

RESUME

BORN 1972, Lancaster, PA

EDUCATION
2004: Master of Fine Art, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, Phi Kappa Phi
1996: Bachelors of Fine Art, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, Kutztown, PA

SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2005: Lynden Gallery, Elizabethtown, PA
2003: Artists' House Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2002: Artists' House Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2001: YorkArts, York, PA
1999: The Lancaster Museum of Art, Lancaster, PA

GROUP EXHIBTIONS
2005:
"State of The Art", Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA
2004:
"Susquehanna en' plein aire- Celebrated painters, Celebrated Study", Lynden Gallery, Elizabethtown, PA
"Summer Show", Artists' House Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
"Faculty Exhibit", Art Association of Harrisburg, Harrisburg, PA (also exhibited 2003)
"Go Figure", Lynden Gallery, Elizabethtown, PA
"Members Juried Exhibit", The Delaware Center for Contemporary Art, Wilmington, DE
(also Exhibited 2002, 1998/99)
"Masters Thesis Exhibit", University Gallery, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
2003:
"Transforming the Common Place: Masters of Contemporary Realism,
Susquehanna Art Museum, Harrisburg, PA (catalog)
"The Landscape Exhibit" (Invitational), The Art Association of Harrisburg, Harrisburg, PA
"Faculty Exhibition", The Art Association of Harrisburg, Harrisburg, PA
"32nd Annual Spring Juried Art Exhibit", Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery,
Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA (also exhibited in 2001,1999 and 1997)
"26th Annual Juried Exhibition", Reading Public Museum, Reading, PA (also exhibited 96)
2002:
"Summer Gallery Artists Show", Artists' House Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
"Members Juried Exhibit", The Delaware Center for Contemporary Art, Wilmington, DE (also Exhibited 1998/99) "Cityscapes", Lancaster Galleries, Lancaster, PA "Townscapes", Lancaster Galleries West, Elizabethtown, PA 2001:
"Trains of Thought: The Railroad in Contemporary Art", Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery,
Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA
2000/01:
"Trains, Planes, and Art on the Move", Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
2000:
"Night: Selected Works by Michael Allen and Robert Heilman", Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery,
Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA (brochure)
"Art of the State: Pennsylvania 2000", State Museum, Harrisburg, PA (also exhibited 1998)
1999:
"Riverwalk Juried Fine Art Exhibition", YorkArts Gallery, York, PA
1998:
"The Urban Landscape", Olmsted Gallery, Penn State Harrisburg, Middletown, PA
"62nd National Midyear Show", The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, OH
"Mayfair National Fine Art Juried Exhibition", Allentown Art Museum, Allentown, PA
"Painting 98", Arlington Art Center, Arlington, VA
"26th Biennial Juried Show", Allentown Art Museum, Allentown, PA 1997:
"The Rural Landscape at Risk", YorkArts Gallery, York, PA
"YorkArts Grand Opening Invitational", YorkArts Gallery, York, PA
"7th Annual Pennsylvania Juried Art Exhibit", John W. Hess Gallery, Elizabethtown College, Elizabethtown, PA (also exhibited 1996,95, and 94)
"20th Annual Art on Paper", MFA Gallery on the Circle, Annapolis, MD

FELLOWSHIPS/AWARDS
2004: Director's Award, "Member's Juried Exhibit", DCCA, Wilmington, DE
2003/2004: Competitive Fellowship, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
2002/2003: Graduate Assistantship, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
2003: Fourth Place Award, 32nd Annual Spring Juried Show, Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA
Honorable Mention, 26th Annual Juried Exhibition, Reading Public Museum, Reading, PA
1999: Best of Show, "Riverwalk Fine Art Juried Exhibition"
1998: Honorable Mention, "Painting '98" ", Arlington Art Center, Arlington, VA
1997: 2nd Place Award, "27th Annual Spring Juried Show", Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA
Purchase Award, "7th Annual Pennsylvania, Juried Art Exhibit" ", John W. Hess Gallery, Elizabethtown College, Elizabethtown, PA
1996: Jurors Merit, "Berks Art Alliance 19th Regional Juried Exhibit" ", Reading Public Museum, West Reading, PA

PROFFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
2004-present: Adjunct Art Faculty: Elizabethtown College, Elizabethtown, PA
2004-present: Adjunct Art Faculty: Harrisburg Area Community College, Harrisburg, PA
2004: Visiting Artist, Elizabethtown College, Elizabethtown, PA
2004: Visiting Artist, Kutztown University, Kutztown, PA (also 2000, 1998)
2002- 2004: Instructor of Record, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
2001- present: Advanced Drawing Instructor, Art Association of Harrisburg, Harrisburg, PA
2003: Scholastic Art Awards Portfolio Judge, PA Capitol Region (also 2002)
2000: Visiting Artist, Kutztown University, Kutztown, PA (also 1998)

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Clouser, Jeff, "Lancaster Museum Kindles Passions of Art and Architecture Lovers", Lebanon Daily News, Sunday, January 10, 1999, illus., pg. B1.
Clouser, Jeff, "Man Enters Picture as Artist Chases New Vision", Lebanon Daily News, Sunday, February 28, 1999, illus., pg. B1.
Daniel Smith Catalog of Artist's Materials, Winter Issue, 1994-95, illus., pg.13
Endick, Kenneth, J., "Art Flows free at Allentown Art Museum", Enjoy: Express Times, Friday February 20, 1998, pg. 7.
Harvard University Press Spring/Summer 2002 New Books, Harvard University Press, 2001, illus. pg.3
Knowles, Laura, "Softer Hues and Darker Views Round Out New Three-artist Show", Happenings, Intelligencer Journal, Friday, January 8, 1999, illus., pg. 20.
Kravetz, Deborah, "Old City Preview: A cornucopia of offerings", Art Matters, November2003, page 7.
Lebanon Valley Chamber of Commerce Member Directory, 2002, cover illus
Lindt, Susan, "At Home in the Gallery", Happenings: Intelligencer Journal, February 22,2002, pg.8, 9, Cover illus. Masters Of Pastel, International Artist Magazine, Issue 31 June/July 2003, Pg 48(illus.)
Mazow, Leo G., "Michael Allen: "Shade" and "Shine", Night: Selected Works by Michael Allen and Robert Heilman, Suzanne H. Art Gallery, Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA, 2000, illus.
Mazow, Leo G., Trains of Thought: The Railroad in Contemporary Art, Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery, Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA 2001, pg. 2.
Reed, Danielle, New Show at Susquehanna Art Museum Pushes the Boundaries of Realism, Modeweekly.com, April 4, 2003,.
New American Paintings, The Open Studios Press, Vol. 27(Mid-Atlantic), 2000, illus., pg.14-17
Scott, James W., "A Sense of Place", The Landscape Exhibit (brochure), 2003

PUBLICATIONS
"A Dance of Color", Gathering Light; The Landscapes of John David Wissler, Exhibition Catalog, Lancaster Galleries. May 2-May31, 2003.

COLLECTIONS
Lancaster Museum of Art, Lancaster, PA
University Gallery, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery,
Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA
Elizabethtown College, Elizabethtown, PA
Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, Kutztown, PA
Cognitive Learning Centers, Inc., Elizabethtown, PA
The Plantation Club, West Reading, PA
Wiedenhammer Systems Corps, Wyomissing, PA
Private Collections in Philadelphia, New York City, Los Angeles, Hershey, PA, Harrisburg, PA, Lancaster, PA, Lititz, PA, Elizabethtown, PA, Hatboro, PA, Annville, PA, Newcastle, DE, Wilmington, DE, Reading, PA

PRESS RELEASES  click on entry to read

Michael Allen at Home: Paintings, Drawings and Sketches, Lynden Gallery- June 2005
Susquehanna en Plein Aire; Celebrated Artists, Celebrated Study, Lynden Gallery- September 2004