We were lucky to catch up with Alli Gerrish recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Alli thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
As an artist, I am moved by the power of art to help people tap into a universal consciousness of the joys and fears we all share. This past year I was honored to participate in a group show at Agora Gallery in New York titled Outside the Box. It was a group exhibition of paintings and sculptures that challenged “physical and psychological limitations of thought, environment, and form” and invited “viewers to embrace vulnerability and find solace in the pursuit of freedom.”
This tied into my Diary of a Lockdown series of digital animations that I had been working on examining the challenges we have been facing as a society these last several years. As a traditional painter, working in this new digital space was exciting. I was able to capture both my mood and my method as I combined my visual language with my voice, writings and music to channel these elements into a visual journal of mini movies portraying the common emotions and events of our collective experience.
Art can function as a powerful reminder of the complexities of the human condition, thereby becoming a source of inspiration for processing and moving forward in our future. Viewing art has been proved to help people heal from external and internal trauma and right now this is needed more than ever.
Alli, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I am Colorado based visual artist living and working in Boulder for the last twenty plus years. My art delves deep into the narratives of human emotions, feelings and energy, channeling these elements towards the transformative process of healing. I employ a diverse range of mediums, including acrylics, mixed media and voiceovers to convey my messages within our societal and cultural experience. Through the work I hope to offer a glimpse into the collective wisdom that emerges from adversity and create compelling stories where viewers can see themselves in their personal and universal experience.
Until recently, I identified primarily as a traditional painter blending abstraction and symbolic figuration to convey my stories. However, my initial career in television production led to a second career in voiceover work which then became a new element in my latest series of digital videos. I began to integrate the method of these digital tools into my artistic practice allowing me to integrate my visual language of mark making with my writings and voice, expanding the horizons of my expressive capabilities.
I have exhibited nationally since 2007 in New York and Colorado and my work is featured in corporate and private collections throughout the United States. I am currently serving as the Chair of the Community Council for the Colorado University Art Museum which aims to “provide a forum for exchanging ideas, inspiring collaboration and fueling imagination through art.”
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
The strength and beauty of life is that we are all connected, all living beings, and nothing and everything about me is unique. We will all suffer from the fragility and the loss in this world at different times in our lives so hopefully art can speak to the part of us that has no words and make people feel less alone.
By sharing my story onto the canvas, it automatically goes from the personal to the universal. My favorite part of any show is to bear witness when someone comes up to tell me the narrative they see in the work. I love watching the story then go from universal back to personal and witnessing that transformational wisdom.
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
The world needs art and artists need the world! Art has the capacity to enliven moods and transform lives and in every community there are ways to reach out and spread the benefits of art.
Connecting with local galleries and artists, taking a class, attending an art fair, visiting an open studios tour or sharing art you like on social media are all ways to help artists reach new audiences and support their work.
Contact Info:
- Website: alligerrish.com
- Instagram: @alligerrish