Ariel McClearin Abstract Paintings

Part of the artist’s ‘The Chaos of My Mind’ series, Ariel McClearin’s painting ‘Picnic in the Park' is an original signed acrylic work on canvas board....

Part of the artist’s ‘The Chaos of My Mind’ series, Ariel McClearin’s ‘Dreaming while Sunbathing at the Beach’ is an original signed acrylic painting on canvas board. The painting’s rich palette coupled with the contrasting dynamism of hard and soft geometric shapes evokes the dreamlike state of sunbathing referenced in the title. A series of striped angles recalls the patterned designs of beach towels, while a flock of v-shaped birds takes flight in the outline of a human in the lower right corner, possibly the prone figure of the sunbather themselves. Acrylic painting on canvas board 14 x 11 inches Signed and dated in ink on reverse Framed in a modern profile silver-finish float moulding ARTIST STATEMENT: I was born in Rock Falls, Illinois where I lived until I was fourteen. I began living in Germany in high school and, during that time, was able to travel across Europe: Italy, France, England, Belgium, The Netherlands, Mallorca, and Switzerland. I am at my heart a performance artist and spent my adolescence participating in musicals ranging from “Into the Woods” to “Guys and Dolls.” Since leaving the performing arts after high school to pursue my business degree, I have been exploring with fashion design and have aspirations to start my own fashion line. Designers like Kate Spade and Minju Kim have inspired both my fashion – and my paintings – with their unique sense of patterns and color composition. I maintain a love of dance and spend time at the ballet watching shows such as “Swan Lake” and “Giselle.” I started painting as a creative outlet during quarantine this year. I wanted to capture a range of emotions that I was unable to express in other creative outlets. I like abstraction and pattern for its ability to reflect emotion as well as for how it allows for open-ended interpretations. I draw inspiration from artists like Kindah Khalidy...

Part of the artist’s ‘The Chaos of My Mind’ series, Ariel McClearin’s ‘Campfire Stories’ is an original signed acrylic painting on canvas board. Combining the richly-saturated hues of Pop Art with the organic movement of Abstract Expressionism, the painting weaves a cyclical narrative of seasonal change—from the gentle snow flurries of late winter, to the interplay of light and moisture in the formation of a rainbow during spring and summer, and finally the warmth of the billowing campfire in the center of the painting, evocative of the approaching autumn. Surrounding the campfire are a number of embellished alphabetical characters—a vaporous ‘v,’ an elongated capital ‘e’ and ‘b,’ an asterisk in bloom—possibly hinting at the language used to convey the stories alluded to in the title. Acrylic painting on canvas board 20 x 16 inches Signed and dated in ink on reverse Framed in a modern profile silver-finish float moulding ARTIST STATEMENT: I was born in Rock Falls, Illinois where I lived until I was fourteen. I began living in Germany in high school and, during that time, was able to travel across Europe: Italy, France, England, Belgium, The Netherlands, Mallorca, and Switzerland. I am at my heart a performance artist and spent my adolescence participating in musicals ranging from “Into the Woods” to “Guys and Dolls.” Since leaving the performing arts after high school to pursue my business degree, I have been exploring with fashion design and have aspirations to start my own fashion line. Designers like Kate Spade and Minju Kim have inspired both my fashion – and my paintings – with their unique sense of patterns and color composition. I maintain a love of dance and spend time at the ballet watching shows such as “Swan Lake” and “Giselle.” I started painting as a creative outlet during quarantine this year. I wanted to capture a range of emotions that I was unable to express in other creative outlets. I like abstraction and pattern for its ability to reflect emotion as well as for how it allows for open-ended interpretations. I draw inspiration from artists like Kindah Khalidy...

Part of the artist’s ‘The Chaos of My Mind’ series, Ariel McClearin’s ‘Pizza Party at the Beach’ is an original signed acrylic painting on canvas board. As a red beach umbrella fans out from the center of the painting, the party begins. Dashes surround undulating lines to evoke the movement of dance, as multicolored lights cast everything in new and unfamiliar hues—namely a slice of pizza in the lower right corner, now rendered pink and dark blue. A sliver of a face can be seen in the opposite corner; however, it appears to be moving out of frame rather than drawing near, suggesting the constant movement of the party and the party-goers. Acrylic painting on canvas board 20 x 16 inches Signed and dated in ink on reverse Framed in a modern profile silver-finish float moulding ARTIST STATEMENT: I was born in Rock Falls, Illinois where I lived until I was fourteen. I began living in Germany in high school and, during that time, was able to travel across Europe: Italy, France, England, Belgium, The Netherlands, Mallorca, and Switzerland. I am at my heart a performance artist and spent my adolescence participating in musicals ranging from “Into the Woods” to “Guys and Dolls.” Since leaving the performing arts after high school to pursue my business degree, I have been exploring with fashion design and have aspirations to start my own fashion line. Designers like Kate Spade and Minju Kim have inspired both my fashion – and my paintings – with their unique sense of patterns and color composition. I maintain a love of dance and spend time at the ballet watching shows such as “Swan Lake” and “Giselle.” I started painting as a creative outlet during quarantine this year. I wanted to capture a range of emotions that I was unable to express in other creative outlets. I like abstraction and pattern for its ability to reflect emotion as well as for how it allows for open-ended interpretations. I draw inspiration from artists like Kindah Khalidy...

Part of the artist’s ‘The Chaos of My Mind’ series, Ariel McClearin’s ‘Organic Banana Smoothie’ is an original signed acrylic painting on canvas. In this painting, the artist playfully employs an array of colors to represent the complex interplay of flavors in the creation of the titular smoothie. Ice cascades from the upper left corner into a green funnel, where below the various ingredients—a banana, blueberries, perhaps a slice of orange—are blended together. Using dashes and furrowed lines to visualize the motion of blending, the process yields a field of multicolored dots that anticipate the commingling of the many flavors and colors that make up the smoothie. Acrylic painting on canvas board 20 x 24 inches, canvas 21 x 25 inches, frame Signed and dated on reverse Framed in a custom silver finish float-style wood moulding ARTIST STATEMENT: I was born in Rock Falls, Illinois where I lived until I was fourteen. I began living in Germany in high school and, during that time, was able to travel across Europe: Italy, France, England, Belgium, The Netherlands, Mallorca, and Switzerland. I am at my heart a performance artist and spent my adolescence participating in musicals ranging from “Into the Woods” to “Guys and Dolls.” Since leaving the performing arts after high school to pursue my business degree, I have been exploring with fashion design and have aspirations to start my own fashion line. Designers like Kate Spade and Minju Kim have inspired both my fashion – and my paintings – with their unique sense of patterns and color composition. I maintain a love of dance and spend time at the ballet watching shows such as “Swan Lake” and “Giselle.” I started painting as a creative outlet during quarantine this year. I wanted to capture a range of emotions that I was unable to express in other creative outlets. I like abstraction and pattern for its ability to reflect emotion as well as for how it allows for open-ended interpretations. I draw inspiration from artists like Kindah Khalidy...