Tricia Alexander
I paint images of the sublime in life. I enjoy producing paintings that are pleasing and also arresting, sometimes thought-provoking. Art speaks to the human spirit, and I want to tap into what is bright and promising in human potential. Art is powerful, and not just for its inherent beauty, but also because it can elicit emotion and provide social commentary.
Positive experiences prompt a chemical release in the brain, which makes people feel good. Research has brought to light that even negative experiences produce a similar chemical release. This helps explain why sad music makes people feel better and tragic books or plays are considered the best literature. Clearly, an artist does not have to stick to painting beautiful things in order to tap into the sublime. Adversity calls forth the human spirit, that indomitable aspect of people that prompts them to rise to the occasion.
Although I have created just as many landscapes and still life paintings as I have figure paintings, my favorite subject is the human being. This may be a result of my previous career as a psychologist, learning to read the inner lives of people from body language and facial expression. Although landscapes and still life paintings can be meaningful, figure paintings tend more often to resonate with the viewers personal experience, or so it seems to me.
I have been studying drawing and painting for 10 years, and have worked exclusively as an artist since June, 2016. My work has appeared in two Redondo Beach Art Group Power of Art shows (2015 & 2016), two CA 101 shows (2017 & 2018), the Rejoice in Art show (2017), the Pasadena Art Show 2018, The Southbay Festival of Arts (2018), The Strawberry Festival (2018), three Redondo Beach Library shows (The Impressionists, 2016; April in Paris, 2017; and Coastal California, 2018), a Redondo Beach Art Group Impressions show (2017), a Redondo Beach Art Group show in State Assemblyman, Al Muratsuchi’s office, and one solo show in Torrance, featuring 30 pieces of my artwork (2017).
Contact:
