b.1966, Dorset, UK
Lives and works in Cornwall, UK
Jess Allen’s works emerge at the atmospheric crux between present and past, conjuring the liveness of an object or place we also sense is lost. Her paintings imply presence through absence through depictions of interior architecture and furniture—the ridge of a bench, a bent-up pillow—rendered in a rich color scheme dominated by deep reds, oranges, greens and blues. The shadow is explored intimately by Allen who casts shadows of figures or architectural features across the fabrics and walls painted in each background. Allen’s shadows function like an inverted spotlight, creating focus and presence through absence. Crumpled cushions on sofas suggest a past human presence through their indentations. Areas of blankness within shadows allow space for thought. Light and shade index the passage of time, with shadows suggesting fleeting moments created by specific angles of the sun's rays and the earth's axis. Shadows are potent but mutable, much like memories that are evocative yet hazy. They capture fleeting moments in time and, when represented, memorialize specific instants within their transient forms. “Shadows interest me immensely because they are silent and ephemeral. They are evocative and, like memories, they are hazy. In a way, they are a minimal representation of our physical selves,” Allen writes.
Jess Allen (b. 1966; lives and works in Cornwall; UK) studied at Camberwell College of Arts and Falmouth School of Art. Allen has had recent solo exhibitions with Unit, London, UK; Scroll Gallery, New York, NY, US; Blue Shop Gallery, London, UK. Her recent group exhibitions have been with Sens Gallery, Hong Kong, CN; Gallery Mark, Seoul, SK; Studio West Gallery, London, UK; and G/ART/EN/ Gallery, Como, IT. Allen’s works are held in the public collections of Femmes Artistes du Musée de Mougins (FAMM), France; Elie Khouri Art Foundation, Dubai, UAE; Sigg Art Foundation, Le Castellet, France; and The Corridor Foundation, China.