Narrative
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Limited Edition
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Populous Conceptual
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Populous Figurative
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Populous Homage
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Populous Chrome
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Populous Commissions
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Populous Mini-Pops
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Craig Alan was born in 1971 in San Bernardino, California. Though always drawn to art, Alan's creativity did not fully develop until his family transferred to New Orleans while he was a child. The vivacious culture nurtured Alan's capacity for detailed visual interpretation. Inspired by the city's enthusiasm for creative expression, he began exploring his own innovative impulses.
Alan's earliest experimentation took the form of street portraiture, an endeavor that helped him perfect his flair for replicating the human figure and afforded the budding artist a sense of economic security. He saved his portrait earnings to pay for school and art supplies. Though he always planned to pursue a formal art education, Alan continued to develop technically and conceptually through his own diligent studies.
During his sophomore year at the University of Mobile, Alabama, Alan undertook vigorous training in art. His enthusiasm for his studies immediately propelled him into the scholastic limelight. With a focus on studio arts, Alan earned an area award for academic excellence. The University's most prestigious exhibition, "Art with a Southern Drawl," featured 42 of Alan's pieces, chosen from a field of more than 1,600 submissions.
A minor concentration in theater further diversified Alan's craft, imbuing him with additional techniques in makeup and set design. This blending of disparate influences and media is visually apparent in all of Alan's works, which demonstrate a broad knowledge and appreciation of the human form as well as the colorful world these beings occupy. Combining his skills into elaborate textures, hues, and compositions, Alan's artwork reveals a technical sophistication as well as an elaborate imagination.
Alan's collections run the gamut from abstract expressionism to haunting, graphic realism, each one a reflection of its creator's unique vision. His prolific career is a culmination of textbook artistic knowledge and keen aesthetic sense, one developed not through intensive schooling but deep within recesses of this artist's brilliant mind.
Craig Alan continues to exhibit his artwork across the United States, where he has established himself as a singular voice in the visual arts industry.
THE WORK
Craig Alan is an artist with a restless eye, pushing the boundaries of visual expression without constraints. Alan’s body of work references numerous styles from pop-surrealism to magic realism to neo-expressionist abstraction and representation. His most recent work, which he refers to as the Populus series, steps outside the tropes of those well-worn formal enterprises with strikingly original images created from hundreds of tiny figures on a white ground.
At first glance, the paintings look like aerial photographs, though a closer inspection reveals that they are painstakingly hand-painted. The images had their genesis in some photos Alan was taking of a wedding party from a high-rise balcony. “Later on that evening I noticed, in one shot, the group of people appeared to have formed an eye. That’s all it took to get the gears moving fast, that one photo is what started it all,” according to Alan.
“Each piece will contain a range of 400 to 1,800 people in it depending on the type of work it is,” says Alan. The creative process is labor intensive: “I can spend anywhere up to 150 working hours and beyond on one section of a painting depending on the size, however, I like to work on more than one painting at a time, I like the challenge, and it sparks new ideas.”
These images have a real “wow” factor to them that comes from the realization that the larger picture is composed of so many intricately rendered figures. “It’s rewarding for me as an artist to watch people’s reaction to my work and to see them get such enjoyment out of it,” says Alan. He hopes that viewers of these paintings will realize “that we are all part of something greater than ourselves, and if we work together, we could achieve greater balance . . . not in a religious sense but rather a universal sense.”
Alan’s other work is entirely different from the Populus series. In the series referred to as Novel Anthology, Alan uses a combination of traditional representational techniques to create literal visual metaphors, portraying children and animals and anthropomorphic images as well lingering in the deep woods and dark interiors. In other images the figure has been removed, leaving ghostly dresses floating on atmospheric grounds Alan prides himself on his eclectic creative process, which is reminiscent of an “old-school” postmodern approach to painting.
According to Alan he isn’t really working from this type of conceptual base; rather he’s simply utilizing a myriad of creative approaches to keep his painting fresh. “I am a student of the arts and will be until I pass,” says Alan. “I love to study and practice technique. These paintings are an extension of the abilities bestowed upon me.”
*Nashville Arts Magazine, “Craig Alan: The Future Is Not Written”, Accessed June 26, 2017 (Edited Version)
Curriculum Vitae
1971 Born in San Bernardino, California
1998 Studied at the University of Mobile, Alabama, Major in Studio Art
2001 the University of Alabama, Winner of "Art with a Southern Drawl" Competition
2002 Recipient of University Academic Excellent Award
Exhibitions/ Gallery Representation
2021
Porrentruy Optical Art Museum, "Art & Illusion: 10 Masters of Optical Art and Neopointillism," Porrentruy, Switzerland
Contessa Gallery, Palm Beach, FL, USA
Animazing Gallery, Las Vegas, NV, USA
Craig Alan "New Works", Canfin Gallery, Tarrytown, NY, USA
2020
"Craig Alan", Art Angels, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Galerie S16, Montreal, Canada
&Collections, Tokyo, Japan
Taglialatella Galleries, Toronto, Canada
Craig Alan "From the Ground Up", Pop International Gallery, New York, NY, USA
2019
"Magic In the Detail", Newbury Fine Art, Boston, MA, USA
Pop International "One Man Show", New York, New York, USA
Art Angels, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Art Angels, Miami, FL, USA
Clarendon Fine Art, Mayfair, England
Contessa Gallery, Ohio, USA
Galeries Bartoux, Paris, France
"Diamonds of Art by Craig Alan", Galerie Mensing, Dusseldorf, Germany
Gallery Biba, Palm Beach, FL, USA
Gaurisco Gallery, Washington D.C., USA
Lahaina Gallery, Wailea, Maui, USA
Minima Gallery, Mikonos, Greece
Newbury Fine Arts, Boston, MA, USA
Off The Wall Gallery, Houston, TX, USA
Pop International Gallery, New York, NY, USA
Studio E, Palm Beach Gardens, FL, USA
2018
Art Angels, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Art Angels, Miami, FL, USA
Clarendon Fine Art, Mayfair, England
Contessa Gallery, Ohio, USA
Galeries Bartoux, Paris, France
Galerie Mensing, “Craig Alan’s Great Art”, Hamburg, Germany
Gallery Biba, Palm Beach, FL, USA
Guarisco Gallery, Washington D.C., USA
Herndon Museum, Atlanta, GA, USA
Lahaina Gallery, Wailea, Maui, USA
The Lemon Grove Gallery, London, England
Newbury Fine Art, Boston, MA, USA
Off The Wall Gallery, Houston, TX, USA
Pop International Gallery, “One Man Show”, New York, NY, USA
Studio E, Palm Beach Gardens, FL, USA
Whistler Gallery, BC, Canada
2017
Art Angels, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Clarendon Fine Art, Mayfair, England
Contessa Gallery, “Out of the Crate”, Cleveland, OH, USA
Galerie Mensing, “Cocktails With Craig”, Palma de Mallorca, Spain
Galerie Mensing, “Craig Alan: Be Part of the Art”, Düsseldorf, Germany
Gallery Biba, Palm Beach, FL, USA
Guarisco Gallery, Washington D.C., USA
The Lemon Grove Gallery, London, England
Mark Hachem Projects, Art Basel, Switzerland
Newbury Fine Art, Boston, MA, USA
Pop International Gallery, New York, NY, USA
Studio E, Palm Beach Gardens, FL, USA
2016
Art Angels, Los Angeles, CA, USA
De Montfort Fine Art, “The Craig Alan Tour”, Lichfield, England
Galerie Mensing, “Stars”, Hamburg, Germany
Guarisco Gallery, Washington D.C., USA
Heitsch Gallery, Art Basel, Switzerland
Pop International Gallery, New York, NY, USA
2015
De Montfort Fine Art, “The Craig Alan Tour”, Lichfield, England
Galerie Mensing, “Craig Alan in Berlin”, Berlin, Germany
Guarisco Gallery, Washington D.C., USA
Hampton Classic Horse Show, BridgeHampton, NY, USA
Fairs
Represented by agent/publisher "Connect Contemporary" at the following fairs:
2024
Art Palm Beach, Palm Beach, FL, USA
2023
Art Palm Beach, Palm Beach, FL, USA
Art Wynwood, Miami, FL, USA
Affordable Art Fair, New York, NY, USA
Art Miami CONTEXT, Miami, FL, USA
2022
LA Art Show, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary, Palm Beach, FL, USA
Hamptons Fine Art Fair, Southampton, NY, USA
Art Miami CONTEXT, Miami, FL, USA
2021
Art Miami CONTEXT, Miami, FL, USA
Affordable Art Fair, New York, NY, USA
2020
Art Palm Springs, Palm Springs, CA, USA
LA Art Show Modern + Contemporary, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary, Palm Beach, FL, USA
2019
CONTEXT Art Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Seattle Art Fair, Seattle, WA, USA
Art New York, New York, NY, USA
LA Art Show Modern + Contemporary, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary, Palm Beach, FL, USA
2018
CONTEXT Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Texas Contemporary, Houston, TX, USA
Market Art + Design, Bridgehampton, NY, USA
Art New York, New York, NY, USA
Affordable Art Fair, New York, USA
Art Boca Raton, Boca Raton, FL, USA
Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary, Palm Beach, FL, USA
2017
CONTEXT Miami, Miami, FL, USA
SCOPE Basel Switzerland
CONTEXT New York, NY, USA
CONTEXT Palm Beach, Palm Beach, FL, USA
2016
CONTEXT Miami, Miami, FL, USA
CUBE Brussels, Belgium
SCOPE Basel Switzerland
CONTEXT New York, NY, USA
2015
CONTEXT Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Art Silicon Valley, Silicon Valley, USA
Hampton Classic, Bridgehampton, NY, USA
Art Hamptons, Bridgehampton, NY, USA
Art Palm Beach, Palm Beach, FL, USA
LA Art Show Modern + Contemporary, Los Angeles, CA, USA
2014
SCOPE Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Houston Fine Art Fair, Houston, TX, USA
Art Baltimore, Baltimore, MD, USA
Art Hamptons, Bridgehampton, NY, USA
Selected Commissions
Woodstock Festival 50th Anniversary, Watkins Glen, New York, USA
Tom Walker, British singer-songwriter, “What A Time To Be Alive” Album Cover
Ted Baker, Art Basel Miami Beach, “David Bowie” 2016
Limitato, Sweden Fashion Brand, Harrods.
Farah Diba, Princess of Persia, Virginia, USA
Indiana Pacers, Indiana, USA
Novartis, East Hanover, “Tree Of Life”, New Jersey, USA
Delta Airlines, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Senator Harry Reid, US Capital, Washington D.C., USA
Hiroyaki Miyasako host of Japanese TV Show on The Fuji- Channel, Osaka, Japan
The Herndon Home, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Publications
"ChildArt, The Intersection of Art and Neuroscience: A View Through the ABCD Lens" - Oct.-Dec 2020
Populus Book Edition IV - 2020
Populus Book Edition III – 2018
“Craig Alan: Homage” – 2018
“Craig Alan: Limited Edition Program” – 2018
“Craig Alan: Narrative” - 2017
Populus Book Edition II – 2015
“Artista Multidisciplinar”, Arte Al Limite– 2015
I Love Durban – 2014
“Craig Alan: The Future Is Not Written”, Nashville Arts Magazine – 2013
“Portraits With People as Pixels”, Zilla On-Line Magazine – 2012
Daily Mail Reporter, UK – 2012
Five Thot Marketing – 2012
Furia Magazine, Antioquia – 2012
“Aerial People Portraits”, Stupid Dope Lifestyle Magazine – 2012
“Portraits Using People”, The Coolist Magazine – 2012
Populus Book Edition I – 2011
“Not-So-Tiny Little People: Craig Alan”, Nest – 2009