Born in the UK, Allan's theoretical specialism is in Surrealism.
Statement "A Combination of Opposites"
All art is an abstraction to some extent, inclusive of both abstract and human elements. I want my work to have a vitality of its own, not necessarily representational or concerned wholly with movement or physical action, but an intense "pent up" energy, independent of the image it may represent. I am interested in the human figure and through life drawing and life painting I observe the principals and natural laws of form and rhythm in the natural environment. Oil paint is the medium itself. Thick oil paint!, its materiality and power of texture is important to me, allowing both and paint to interlock, so the image is the paint and the paint is the image. An Inner and outer response pinned on canvas; idea and technique being one and the same. Painting with a palette knife forces me to loosen up and has the dimension and quality I like, where colour, shape and value translate feelings into the visual and tell the story on an impasto surface. These principals and nature's elemental forces shape my painting style, particularly in the remote Cornwall and Wales landscapes where I am intuitively drawn; an environment where human presence is very little in evidence. Light and storms sweep in. Colossal energy and indifferent natural forces have formed the lines and granite of these ancient coastlines.
Education: Master of Arts, Chelsea School of Art, London Bachelor of Arts, University of Wales Post Graduate Certificate of Education, Kings College Postgraduate Research Mentor Professor Toshio Watanabe The Psychological Theories of Professors Freud and Jung and Twentieth Century Surrealism's Impact upon the Creative Principle and Individual Development; both Socially and Artistically.
Present Practising Artist and Owner of Rugby Arts, Visiting Lecturer Art and Surrealism, Cornwall Representaion Art House Gallery St. Ives, Cornwall