Statement
I want to paint a kind of realism that compels a strong feeling of wonder by using images we recognize but feel we have never seen before. I love to combine the fresh qualities of a gestural sketch with areas of such spare suggestions of volume that alone, they make no sense, yet in context they pop out.
In the same way that poetry distills layers of emotion and meaning in a few lines, I developed a passion for condensing my fascination for the visual world into a few intensely meaningful marks. By simplifying the figure, using as little information as possible, and discarding excessive detail, what remained were the essential shapes depicting truth in the form of abstraction.
Figurative painting will never die. Shapes and forms that may have originally been classical are now simply a means to an end. The body speaks its own language, which I, like many artists use as a tool for creative expression.
In the same way that poetry distills layers of emotion and meaning in a few lines, I developed a passion for condensing my fascination for the visual world into a few intensely meaningful marks. By simplifying the figure, using as little information as possible, and discarding excessive detail, what remained were the essential shapes depicting truth in the form of abstraction.
Figurative painting will never die. Shapes and forms that may have originally been classical are now simply a means to an end. The body speaks its own language, which I, like many artists use as a tool for creative expression.
Alexandra Becker-Black
971.235.2622 e: abeckerblack@yahoo.com
Experience
Josefa Kate Gallery
525 NW 10th Avenue Portland, Oregon
Art Center Gallery, Astoria OR
"Au Naturel: Nude In The 20th Century," International Juried Exhibition 2008
Young Rembrants
Teaching drawing to young children after school, OR 2008
RISD Alumni Art Sale
Convention Center, Providence RI 2007
Street fair art market
Portland OR, summer 2007
Rhode Island School of Design student art sale
Benefit Street, Providence RI 2007
ISB Gallery, RISD, Providence, RI
“Untitled,” Illustration group exhibition 2007
Benson Hall Gallery, RISD, Providence, RI
Two person show featuring: Alexandra Becker-Black & Kate Sanders-Fleming 2007
Woods Gerry Illustration Exhibit, RISD, Providence, RI
Group exhibition 2007
Community Nonprofit Gallery Exhibit
Pearl District, Portland OR, summer 2006
Street fair art market
Portland OR, summer 2006
Teachers Assistant
Rhode Island School of Design, Continuing Ed, summer 2004
Skills
Computer: Macintosh
Basic knowledge in Photoshop and Microsoft Word
Excellent drafting ability
Silkscreen Product design: T-shirts/clothing
Born
American, United States, Santa Fe, New MexicoEducation
Rhode Island School of Design- Providence, RI
Bachelors of Fine Arts, Illustration, (honors) 2003-07
Pre College Summer Session - Drawing 2002Oregon College of Art and Craft- Portland, OR
Summer Session – Figure Sculpture 2005
Pacific Northwest College of Art- Portland, OR
Summer Session – Figure Drawing 2005
Renaissance Painting in Italy
Venice, Florence, and Rome, Italy 2005