THE ARTIST. THE ARTWORK.
The ultimate definition: why I am who I am and why I do what I do.
Photo Credit: (c) T J Allen Art
I knew art was what I was naturally drawn to as a child, but I honestly didn’t know if I still had the ability. With a 17-year absence, I’d lost all my confidence and had to go back to basics’.
Photo Credit: (c) Neil Cannon
The Artist.
Teresa (preferably known by her nickname of ‘T’) was drawn to art and creativity from childhood and loved the ability to use her hands to craft something from nothing. At the age of 9, she joined a local art class where she relished in experimenting with different subjects and mediums. Whether it was drawing, painting, textiles, woodwork or ceramics, she loved the ability of creating unique hand-made items.
After A-levels, T completed a BTEC Diploma in Art followed by a BA (Hons) degree in Applied Art where she specialised in glass sculptures. She diverted away from choosing Fine Art (painting) because she felt her love for creating realistic artwork was not aligned with what the fine art tutors would have wanted.
After Uni, T felt she needed experience from general working life, so her art was nearly all but forgotten about. She eventually fell into Event Management where she spent a decade organising high-end luxury incentive travel events around the world. This sparked her love of adventure travel and wildlife encounters, which in turn led to the creation of 25 photo-books documenting her trips.
At the end of 2019, she was made redundant which became the push she needed to rediscover her art skills.
Setting up a self-employed art business during the 2020 pandemic was a rollercoaster of emotions.
‘Starting up on your own isn’t easy at the best of times, but the only saving grace about lockdown was it gave me the chance to build my portfolio and completely fall in love with my artwork again. The business-side has been tough, but I’m enormously proud of what I’ve achieved and have big aspirations for the future’.
The Artwork.
T’s extensive adventures observing animals in their natural habitat have become a great source of inspiration for her artwork. She travelled to South Africa for the first time in 2009 and visited a further 5 times in the following 8 years. ‘I’ve seen leopards mating, lions on a kill, I’ve been lucky enough to observe gorillas in Rwanda, and cage-dive with great white sharks at Guadalupe Island off the coast of Mexico. I get a great sense of peace, wonder and fascination by simply watching the animals in their own environment’.
T's artwork is not created by chance. She takes significant time selecting the right image and composition to showcase the animal subject in all its glory. She has to feel a connection with the image and be drawn to what she is working on.
‘My work is specifically undistracted by a background because I want the wildlife to be centre of attention. It allows me to enhance particular characteristics, from textures in the skin or fur to the expressive magnetism of the eyes. I want to draw the viewer in to see the tiny details and how I’ve created them’.
Although her art education focused more on acrylic and oil painting, T felt drawn to working in pastels. 'There is something about the tactile nature of holding the pastel in my fingertips and creating marks that make me feel like I’m part of the artwork’.
She blocks in the colours and builds up textures with soft pastel sticks before adding in finer, sharper details with pastel pencils. ‘It is all about layers; you have to get to a certain point where the pastels flow and glide on the paper. I get a sense of knowing what I need to do and how to do it, I’m very much led by my intuition’.
With copious hours spent at the easel creating each artwork, there always seems to be a deeper meaning or message it is trying to portray, and the naming of the artwork becomes just as important as it generates a further tie to connect with the audience.
‘I guess the artwork will always be an expression of what is going on in my life and I’m keen for the viewer to understand what it means to me and how I’ve been inspired. I appreciate others might view it in a different light or simply enjoy seeing it as a depiction of their favourite animal – art is subjective after all’.
Photo Credit: (c) Neil Cannon
Ultimately, I want to share with others the love that I pour into my work, how I passionately bring each animal character to life and to transfer the experiences from foreign lands back to homes in the UK. My aim is to reignite memories of past safari trips and inspire new adventures to see wildlife in their natural environment’.
T J Allen Art
Photo Credit: (c) Neil Cannon