(Among the Shadows 12×16 oil by Krystal Allen)
How do you view the world? Through rose colored glasses? Through a practical or artistic eye?
Prineville artist Krystal Allen views it searching for beauty in abstract lines. Always considering composition, light and shadow, capturing moments in time are what excites her when creating her art. Whether painting in oils or watercolors or making graphite drawings, she shares her vision of our time and place, hoping to bring a bit of beauty and peace, and perhaps a bit of excitement to her viewers. Focusing primarily on landscapes, studio and plein air, she also delves into some figurative work, animals, and still life.
Enamored with drawing at a very young age, she gradually honed her skills capturing what she saw. Fortunate to have the same art teacher throughout grammar and high school, this consistent influence was big boost to her skills and confidence in her creative vision. While studying advertising and design in college she learned much about marketing which would play a significant role in her professional life.
Before retiring from her job as the West Coast sales manager for PleinAir and Fine Art Connoiusseur magazines, she worked for a picture frame manufacturer designing frames with custom finishes and managing their flagship design showroom and art gallery. It was at this job she had the privilege to design and frame an illustration done by one of her biggest influences, N.C. Wyeth, as well as many other noted artists, historic and contemporary. While doing all of this she was active in her local art market, helping to raise funds and awareness through her art for a small museum, a national seashore, saving San Francisco Bay, and several other nonprofit organizations.
She moved to Prineville in 2015 and spent two years helping her husband remodel and improve a 1952 property where her studio is housed. Her work can in the upcoming Sisters Harvest Faire October 12 and 13 and the Dry Canyon Arts Association Fall Art Show at the Redmond High School November 16 and 17. In July of 2025 she will have an exhibit of Rodeo themed pieces at the Clymer Museum and Gallery in Ellensburg, Washington where there is also a Rodeo Hall of Fame on permanent exhibit.
Currently she is an active member of the Plein Air Painters of Oregon and the Dry Canyon Arts Association participating in events when the opportunity arises.