Alison
Bio - Alison Barrows-Young
Author and artist Alison Barrows-Young's passion for art is imprinted on her DNA. With generations of artists in her family, it is no wonder why Barrows-Young has always followed her heart to create. She was born in New York City and raised in Ontario, Canada, where her parents encouraged her at a young age to pursue her art, beginning when she was just a child. After receiving a bachelor's in fine arts, Alison secured a 6-month apprenticeship with the artist George Woodman before continuing her education to obtain a master's in fine arts, which qualified her to teach in art schools and Universities. During her first year of teaching and professional practice, she received an NEA Fellowship through the state of New Jersey. Throughout her life, Barrows-Young has divided her career between teaching upper-level and professional studio art. Barrows-Young's work is exhibited and owned globally, with her art displayed in dozens of solo and group exhibitions. Alison apprenticed for eight years in Don Miguel Ruiz's inner circle and has been an active practitioner of his Lineage of Toltec Wisdom since 1994. She has a passion for diverse environments and a desire to capture them to share the beauty they inspire in her and promote their enormous importance to the survival of our planet.
"New communities and the study of enduring visual principles have given me a constant source of dynamic material to explore in my work. I have witnessed many beautiful and extraordinary ecosystems challenged by our unbridled sprawl. Time is running out, so we must move forward. We must collect and restore what we can of our beautiful planet and divide humanity. During these times of trouble, the tension is palpable, and it feels like we are coming to a crisis point. Now more than ever. I feel an urgency to inspire action with each piece I create."
Alison Barrows-Young
“I have come to believe that I require art. For me art is a compelling way of life, it promotes essential self-expression as well as inter-relational and intercultural connection. It is for me the most powerful way to articulate my quandaries as well as my discoveries, passions, and dreams.”
Through the years my artist voice has gathered into an alliance with my preference to live in the wilderness, to preserve nature and to advocate for the earth.
I am devoted to self-awareness, living peacefully within our biosphere and to nurturing youthful persistence. I hold this path as a mother, grandmother and mentor for those who are borne to me through my body, my wanderings and upon the wind.
Born August 27, 1958 NYC
Childhood Ontario Canada 1968 - 1982
Antioch College BFA 1980
Florida State University MFA 1984
Concordia University M.ED 2010
Adjunct Professorships 1984-2008
Shamanic Practitioner, Toltec Lineage, 1994-Present
One Person Exhibitions
Outskirts Gallery Hope ID – Sept 2016 – 620 Wellington Pl, Hope, ID 83836
Pend Orielle Art Council – Nov 2015 –Feb 2016, Columbia Bank Building, Sandpoint ID
Outskirts Gallery Hope ID – June 2015 – 620 Wellington Pl, Hope, ID 83836
Outskirts Gallery Hope ID – July 2014 – 620 Wellington Pl, Hope, ID 83836
Boulder Art Gallery, Boulder CO – November 2004 & November 2003 1708 15th Street, Boulder, CO
Bowman Gallery, Saratoga CA – June 1994 – 14361 Saratoga Avenue, Saratoga, CA 95070
The Drawing Room, Rahway NJ – April 1987 – 103 W Main St, Rahway, NJ 07065
Aljira, A Center For Contemporary Art, Newark NJ -January 1986 – 591 Broad St., Newark 07102
Tilden-Foley Art Gallery, New Orleans LA – March 1986 & March 1985 – 14 Crane St, New Orleans, LA
FSU Museum of Fine Arts, Tallahassee, FL – May 1984 – 530 W Call Street, Tallahassee, FL 32306
Glassell School of Art Museum, Houston TX – February 1983 – 5101 Montrose Blvd, Houston, Texas 770
Antioch College, Yellow Springs OH – June 1980 – 1 Morgan Pl, Yellow Springs, OH 45387
Group Exhibitions
Little Treasures – May 2019 – Bologna Italy – Trevisan International
Poetic Perspectives – October 2018 – New York City – The Miyako Yoshinaga Gallery, Curated by Art Productions NYC
A Celebration of Art – Dec 2018 – New York City – Grimaldi Gallery
Wonders of our Universe – November 2018, New York City – Viviana Puello Gallery
Interpretations – September 2017 – Madrid Spain, Trevisan International
Miami Basel Festival – Dec 2016 – Miami, Artifact NYC, Art Up Close
Pend Orielle Art Council – April 2016 – June 2016, Columbia Bank Building, Sandpoint ID
Pend Orielle Art Council – Works About Water – February 2016, Main Street Gallery, Sandpoint ID
Little Treasures – Oct and Nov 2016, Madrid Spain and then Bologna Italy – Trevisan International
Political Art Exhibit – November 2016, Infini Gallery, Sandpoint
Pend Orielle Art Exhibit – October 2016, Columbia Bank Sandpoint Idaho
Group Exhibition – September 2016, Madrid Spain – Trevisan International
Infini Gallery – Three Artists – Aug 2016 – Sandpoint Idaho
Pend Orielle Art Council – Art Walk Summer 2016 – Monarch Mountain Café, Sandpoint ID
Little Treasures – Nov 2015, Bologna Italy – Trevisan International
Interpretative Realms – July 31 – August 20, 2015, Agora Gallery, New York City, NY
Sandpoint Center for the Arts / Arts Alliance – June 2013 – 518 Oak St, Sandpoint ID, 83864
Sandpoint Art Association -January – March 2015, Sandpoint, ID 83864
Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art – May 2010 – 1750 13th Street, Boulder, CO 80302
Canyon Art Gallery, Boulder CO – June 2007 & June 2006, & April 2005 – 1001 Arapahoe Ave, Boulder, Co 80302
The Great Frame Up Gallery, Longmont CO – September 2006, 430 Main Street, Longmont, CO 80501
Annual Faculty Art Exhibit, Front Range College, Boulder CO – 2003 through 2008, Longmont, CO 80501
CU Art Museum, Boulder CO – March 2006, 914 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80302
Open Studios, Boulder CO – 2001through 2005, 1301 Spruce St, Boulder, CO 80302
BMOCA, Boulder CO – 1996 &1998, 1750 13th Street, Boulder, CO 80302
Euphrat Museum of Art, De Anza College Faculty Exhibit – 1993, 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd, Cupertino, CA 95014
Visual Art Center of New Jersey, Faculty Art Exhibit – 1985 through 1988, 68 Elm St, Summit, NJ 07901
Paul Robeson Galleries, Rutgers Faculty Exhibition – 1986 through 1989, 350 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd Newark, NJ
The New Jersey State Council on the Arts Fellowship – Exhibition 1986
Aljira, A Center For Contemporary Art, Newark NJ – January 1985 – 591 Broad St., Newark 07102
LeMoyne Center For Visual Arts – 1984 & 1983, 125 N Gadsden St, Tallahassee, FL 32301
National Women in the Arts Exhibition, Philadelphia PA – Exhibition1982
Education
2008 – Masters in Education – Concordia University, Portland OR – Graduated Summa Cum Laude
1984 – Masters in Fine Arts – Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL – Graduated Summa Cum Laude
1980 – Bachelors in Fine Arts – SVA, New York City /Antioch University, Yellow Springs, OH
Honors
2020 Selected Recipient for A Masters Award in Florence Italy, Art International Magazine, NYC
2019 Editors Pick, Spring Edition of Art International Magazine, NYC
2018 Artist for a Green Planet Award, Viviana Puello Gallery
1986 – Juror, Annual New Jersey Invitational, Straube Art Center, Pennington NJ
1985 – 1986 Fellowship Recipient – New Jersey State Council on the Arts,
1982 – 1983 Florida State University Gallery Fellowship Recipient
1983 – 1984 Florida State University Teaching Assistantship
1977 – 1980 Antioch University Teaching Assistantships in Printmaking & Film
Teaching Experience
2017 – Artist in Residence, Clark Fork Junior and Senior High Schools, Hope ID
2014 – 2016 – Artist in Residence, Outskirts Center for The Arts, Hope ID
2012 – 2014 – Artist in Residence, Sandpoint Waldorf School
2012 – 2013 – Art Instructor, Sandpoint Art Alliance
2010 – Lead Teacher – Shepherd Valley Waldorf School – Summer Program
2006 – 2008 Adjunct Faculty, Art Institute Online, Pittsburgh PA
2004 – 2008 Adjunct faculty, Front Range Community College, Boulder, CO
1994 – 2004 Director – Barrows School of the Arts, Boulder, CO
1991 – 1994 Associate Director, Barrows Young School of Art, Saratoga, CA
1986 – 1990 Instructor, Stanford University Extension Program, Palo Alto, CA
1984 – 1986 Faculty, New Jersey Center for Visual Arts, Summit, NJ
1984 – 1986 Adjunct Faculty, Rutgers University Extension Program, Newark, NJ
1983 – 1984 Adjunct Professor, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL
1980 – 1982 Art Teacher – City Day School, Springfield, IL