Rebecca Allan’s multipanel painting references the structures of early Renaissance altarpieces. From this tradition she inherits not only the polyptych format, but also the architectural and geometric framing devices. She is fascinated by the use of perspectival geometry in early Renaissance paintings as a means of re-envisioning and delineating space, and although this is the first time Allan is working in a multipanel format, her long-standing interest in geometric forms can be traced to her earlier paintings of rivers and watersheds. Here, she interprets the seasonal trees and vistas of Wave Hill, instead of the religious subjects that would have been more traditionally found in fifteenth-century altarpieces. She also has chosen to extend the views of the Palisades across multiple frames in the predella (the bottom panels), whereas traditional altarpieces would have contained separate narrative scenes in each panel. By intentionally departing from this tradition, Allan emphasizes the seemingly infinite expanse of the view, demonstrating its inability to be contained. The breadth of the predella scene is punctuated by portraits of the Japanese maple (Acer palmatum), Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) and largeleaved linden (Tilia platyphyllos), providing a closer look at some of the prominent figures in the vast landscape.

In addition to painting, Rebecca Allan also works in charcoal, which she makes herself from big-leaf maple (Acer macrophylla) branches. She will lead an art workshop on the subject Trees from Charcoal; Charcoal from Trees at Wave Hill on May 17, from 12:30 to 4pm. Allan will have solo exhibitions this year at the Cary Institute for Ecosystem Studies, Milbrook, NY, and the Upfront Gallery, Penrith, England. She has had solo exhibitions at Gallery 2/20, New York, NY; John Davis Gallery, Hudson, NY; Allegheny College Art Gallery, Meadville, PA; Fine Impressions Gallery, Seattle, WA; and Lowry James Fine Prints, Langley, WA; among others. Allan also directs exhibition-related education at the Bard Graduate Center, New York, NY. Allan earned her BA from Allegheny College and her MFA from Kent State University.

More information can be found at: www.rebeccaallan.com