Battle by Frank Allen

The Construction and Deconstruction of a Noise Curtain – Original Art and Music by Frank Allen

New abstract art from the hidden depths of Franks Subconscious.

Us and Them by Frank Allen

A Video inside Franks creative process. A world with no rules.

35 Minute of Improvised Art in 3 Minutes. Music and Art by Frank Allen

Laser Beak Man - A DOUBLE SHOT OF HAPPINESS

Tim Sharp is 23 years old and has Autism. Autism is a lifelong condition that is without a cure. It severely affects everyday life and it cruelly impacts the most on the ability to communicate and form relationships.

Tim was diagnosed with Autism when he was three years old. Such were Tim’s enormous difficulties that the doctor’s advice was “that the best thing to do was put him away and forget about him.” Rejecting the prognosis, intensive therapy began immediately and bravely Tim tried to overcome what was so terrifying and difficult for him.

Drawing was used as a way of helping Tim to communicate. At age 11 Tim invented Laser Beak Man who allows Tim to show the world his great sense of humour and intelligence as well as his quirky way of looking at life.

Laser Beak Man - DON'T LEAVE ME

Tim was the only Australian selected by a jury in the young adult drawing category for the VSA (Very Special Arts) Festival in Washington DC. Founded 30 years ago by Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith - sister of President John F. Kennedy - VSA is the largest art festival in the world for people with disabilities. Acceptance to the festival was an extraordinary achievement and the story of Tim’s trip to Washington DC was told on the ABC’s “Australian Story.”

Exhibiting at the Sydney Opera House and the National Museum of Australia as well as Washington DC and New York, Tim’s colorful art is very much in demand from international and Australian art collectors. A finalist for the Young Australian of the Year, Tim has also received many awards and extensive Australian and international media coverage.

Laser Beak Man - A WILD NIGHT OUT

Now Tim has had another dream come true, as  Laser Beak Man now has his own  8 episode animated series screening  on ABC3TV, Cartoon Network Asia, New Zealand and Australia, a world first for a young man with Autism to have his creation turned into a television series.

Tim also makes many public appearances to spread the message of ability and acceptance, at schools and events.

Laser Beak Man - WHAT A TOOL

Art allows Tim to enjoy some of things he wants most in life, acceptance and inclusion, an encouraging word, a happy smile and friendship. The future is quite limited for Tim but Laser Beak Man is helping Tim build a brighter future for himself and step outside the loneliness of Autism.

Saul Alegria’s creative intuition flows naturally. Upon his arrival to NIAD in 2007 he hit the ground running with a series of animal watercolors that won immediate praise.

Saul Alegria’s creative intuition flows naturally. Upon his arrival to NIAD in 2007 he hit the ground running with a series of animal watercolors that won immediate praise. Although he worked primarily from books, he made each creature his own, simplified and whimsical. Each animal is stripped down to its bare identity, infused with technicolor, and they are often filled with emotion, like a frowning eagle. In addition to animals, Alegria has been sprinkling his new work with a variety of symbols and objects. A shoe, iPod, or boat may appear on its own or in conjunction with floating hearts, spades, and yin-yang symbols. At times he seems to be documenting the world around him, but at other times a surreal character takes hold of the work. In one recent image a thumb morphs into a snake.

In the Studio

A man of few words, Alegria quietly works in the studio with headphones and a watercolor brush in hand. His workspace is very organized. Reference books, paint and brushes are tightly arranged around the edge of the paper. He begins each piece by drawing his subject with a black marker. Once the basic structure and details are in place he’ll wet the brush and commence with color. His palette is vivid and harmonious. While some colors accurately depict his subject others are otherworldly.

Upcoming Publication

In 2008 NIAD set out to create and publish a children’s book featuring Alegria’s animals. With help from graphic designer Michelle Kim and volunteer Janet Barton, NIAD is pleased to announce that Arnica Creative is planning to print 5,000 copies of the book this fall for release in May of 2011. This project will show off Alegria’s tremendous talent, pleasing the eyes of many discerning kids and parents.

Art

King Cobra Saul Alegria

Mute Swan Saul Alegria

A Green Whale Saul Alegria

A Chicken Saul Alegria

Lois Ann Barnett’s landscape paintings and drawings, style is content. She takes scenes from books and magazines and remakes them so that, as she says, “they don’t look at all like” the source pictures.

Her hills and dales, skies and lakes, trees and rocks are strongly constructed of contoured bands of colors applied with distinct, nearly uniform brush or pencil strokes. A hill may be built with contoured bands of six different greens, reds or blues. She is not bound by conventional colors. Many of her works become pure color abstracts.

Barnett’s skills are remarkable in view of her severely limited vision resulting from a degenerative eye disease. She had some art instruction in special classes at Contra Costa College. She began painting when she came to NIAD in 1988 at age 27.

Aside from the San Francisco ’49ers, Barnett’s main interest is working on her art at NIAD. “When I’m down in the dumps or if I’m angry, I can come here and take it out on the paper, ” she says, smiling.

Barnett’s work has been exhibited in China, Chicago, Washington, DC and California. Recently, Barnett was one of 3 featured artists at the Lighthouse for the Blind & Visually Impaired exhibition, INSIGHTS 2007, at San Francisco City Hall.

Lois Ann Barnett - Hawaii Waterfall - colored pencil on paper - 30x23 inches

Lois Ann Barnett - Untitled (2) - colored pencil on paper - 30x23 inches

Lois Ann Barnett - Untitled - colored pencil on paper - 30x23 inches

Shana Harper came to NIAD in January 2005, shortly after her sister Raven arrived. In her short time at NIAD Ms. Harper has been very prolific producing jewelry, paintings, prints, and other forms of wearable art.

Her two-dimensional work has been highly influenced by Vincent Van Gogh and her choice of subject matter includes wildlife, portraits, and scenes of home life. Harper has also ventured into creative writing at NIAD.  She’s worked on several collaborative projects with other NIAD artists and has incorporated several of her poems into prints and drawings.

In addition to working towards her goal of becoming a professional jeweler, Ms. Harper works with children at the Disabled People’s Recreation Center in Richmond, CA.  She enjoys working with kids and giving back to her community.

Shana Harper - The Blessed Tulip - linocut print - 9x6 inches

Shana Harper - The Other Me - linocut print - 12x9 inches

Shana Harper - The Maze Flower - linocut print - 6x9 inches

Shana Harper - Rainbow Dog - linocut print - 9x12 inches

Sylvia Fragoso appeared on a Bay Area TV show in 1992 and was asked if she was a good artist. “I am, Yes, I am”, she responded.

As well she might. Ms. Fragoso’s artwork ha been exhibited in Miyazaki, Japan and Shanghai, China; at the Webb and Parsons Gallery in Vermont; Very Special Art Gallery in Palm Beach; Community College of Southern Nevada; in NIAD’s traveling exhibit, The Creative Spirit; and the Berlex Biosciences Corporate Offices in Richmond, CA.

Fragoso’s art celebrates life in a playful way that reflects a love of nature, people, church, and the vibrant color combinations of her Hispaninc heritage. In her art, she creates mosaic and web-like combinations in which people become animals, flowers become people, eyes become suns, suns become moons, and moons become faces and angels.

Fragoso was born with Down Syndrome in 1962 and started drawing and painting at the age of 22 after joining NIAD in 1984. She lives with her family in San Pablo and enjoys bowling and music. She has also participated in the state Olympics for gymnastics.

Ms. Fragoso’s work was also featured in 2004 at Radiant Spaces: Private Domain, in Santa Monica and Irvine, as well as in a solo exhibit, Expressions of Being Me, at Papillon Gourmet Coffees & Art Gallery in Lafayette, CA, and in the 2005 Amazing World of NIAD Art Center exhibit at the Concourse Gallery in San Francisco.

Sylvia Fragoso - Untitled - linocut print - 9x9 inches

Sylvia Fragoso - Untitled - pencil on paper - 19x25 inches

Sylvia Fragoso - Catherine's Angel - Lost Plate Woodcut - 17x16 inches

Rosita Pardo has been coming to NIAD since 1987. She turns 70 this year and as a longstanding elder member of the community is NIAD’s matriarch. Pardo has enjoyed much success over the years for her drawing and painting, which is rendered in a linear style that has gained her notoriety with critics and collectors.

Much of Ms. Pardo’s subject matter is religious. Pardo regularly attends church and her work is greatly influenced by biblical anecdotes and Christian motifs. Specifically she has painted many scenes of The Mother and Child, The Crucifixion of Christ, and Adam and Eve. Pardo is a fan of boxing and often comes to NIAD speaking about a fight she watched over the weekend, hoping to find a fellow fan with whom to gab over the finer points of the match. Springing from this fanaticism has come a body of work based on the ring and it’s coming and goings. The majority of this work has found its way into collections across the country but a select amount does still remain at the NIAD gallery.

Rosie Pardo has a harder time getting around in her senior years but she still comes to NIAD each week to consistently work on her drawings. Her subject matter continues to follow its regular patters and her ability to finely craft each piece has not diminished.

Pardo’s work was recently included in the exhibit “Outsider Art: The Creative Necessity” at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art in 2005 and the 2007 exhibit “ArtAble: Celebrating Americans with Disabilities Month through Visual Form” at the O’Hanlon Center for the Arts Gallery in Mill Valley, CA.