ARTIST STATEMENT
Ella makes artwork to recognize spiritually nourishing experiences, to explore constructions of identity, and in search of catharsis for emotional energy. Her two primary mediums, oil painting and paper cuts, chart contrasting paths in shared subject matter. Oil paint lends itself to layers of texture, and diversity of color. Through this medium, Ella is able to accentuate the vitality found in the woods and water. Thick paint and gestural mark bring expressive energy and personal significance to the traditionally lone wilderness landscapes. Her paintings are large, vibrant depictions of landscapes, people and memories that convey a nostalgia and fondness for moments past.
Ella’s paper cuts portray richly textured compositions of landscapes, figures and portraiture. Edges of light and dark are cut away with precision to reveal patterns of rippling water, silhouetted tree lines, and sun soaked figures. Ella’s work in portraiture focuses on the figure’s expression of emotion, specifically related to healing work around trauma and identity. Chiaroscuro defines the figure and organic forms of the compositions. The cut paper provides a unique, high contrast medium with which to layer atop paper, wood, canvas and translucent acetate. Each work is an original, cut by hand.
Same Cloth is a collaborative project with Ella and her mother, Mary Untalan. Their project focuses on decorative and functional applications of paper cut artwork, including as light fixtures and home decor. Their bi-costal collaborations began after their successful two-person exhibit at the Tivoli Arts Gallery in Tivoli, New York. Same Cloth continues to frequently exhibit at the Tivoli Artists Gallery.
Ella’s paper cuts portray richly textured compositions of landscapes, figures and portraiture. Edges of light and dark are cut away with precision to reveal patterns of rippling water, silhouetted tree lines, and sun soaked figures. Ella’s work in portraiture focuses on the figure’s expression of emotion, specifically related to healing work around trauma and identity. Chiaroscuro defines the figure and organic forms of the compositions. The cut paper provides a unique, high contrast medium with which to layer atop paper, wood, canvas and translucent acetate. Each work is an original, cut by hand.
Same Cloth is a collaborative project with Ella and her mother, Mary Untalan. Their project focuses on decorative and functional applications of paper cut artwork, including as light fixtures and home decor. Their bi-costal collaborations began after their successful two-person exhibit at the Tivoli Arts Gallery in Tivoli, New York. Same Cloth continues to frequently exhibit at the Tivoli Artists Gallery.
ARTIST BIO
Ella’s work with landscapes is inspired by fond memories of the outdoors, particularly the pines and lakes of the Northeastern United States. Originating from the Hudson Valley in New York, Ella grew up appreciating the region’s wilderness, along with the neighboring Adirondacks and state of Vermont. Now a transplant to Berkeley, California, she continues evolving her art practice. She spent several years running a local gallery and design shop, CelerySpace, where she organized craft pop-up events, workshops, and managed the brick and mortar storefront as well as their online shop. Recently, Ella's been pursuing a graduate degree in expressive arts therapy. This study has expanded her arts practice to include intermodal use of the creative arts, focusing on process over product, and emphasizing play and exploration in pursuit of expanded understanding and expression.
Ella has a bachelor’s degree in Studio Art from Skidmore College, receiving the Jesse Solomon award for painting, and honors for her Thesis Exhibition at the Tang Museum in Saratoga Springs, New York. Ella has exhibited in juried group shows around the country, and has shown in two-person shows at the Tivoli Artists’ Gallery in Tivoli, New York and at the Paul Smiths’ Visitor’s Interpretive Center in Saranac, New York. Ella was an Associate Member of the Tivoli Artists Gallery in Tivoli, New York, and regularly exhibits there along side her mother and collaborator, Mary Untalan. Ella's paintings and paper cuts are part of permanent installations at Songadeewin of Keewaydin in Salisbury, Vermont; Hudson Headwaters Health Network in Warrensburg, New York; and Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.
Ella has a bachelor’s degree in Studio Art from Skidmore College, receiving the Jesse Solomon award for painting, and honors for her Thesis Exhibition at the Tang Museum in Saratoga Springs, New York. Ella has exhibited in juried group shows around the country, and has shown in two-person shows at the Tivoli Artists’ Gallery in Tivoli, New York and at the Paul Smiths’ Visitor’s Interpretive Center in Saranac, New York. Ella was an Associate Member of the Tivoli Artists Gallery in Tivoli, New York, and regularly exhibits there along side her mother and collaborator, Mary Untalan. Ella's paintings and paper cuts are part of permanent installations at Songadeewin of Keewaydin in Salisbury, Vermont; Hudson Headwaters Health Network in Warrensburg, New York; and Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.
EDUCATION
2012 Bachelor of Science cum laude and Departmental Honors in Studio Art, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York
2011 Studio Arts Centers International, Florence, Italy (summer session)
2011 Studio Arts Centers International, Florence, Italy (summer session)
AWARDS / HONORS
2012 Jesse Solomon Memorial Award for Painting, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York
2012 Senior Thesis Exhibition Honors, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York
2011 Pro – Arts Award, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York
2012 Senior Thesis Exhibition Honors, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York
2011 Pro – Arts Award, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York
EXHIBITIONS
2019 The Holiday Show, Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2019 The Group Show and Sale 2019, Delamater Conference Center, Rhinebeck, New York.
2018 The Holiday Show, Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2018 The Group Show and Sale 2018, Delamater Conference Center, Rhinebeck, New York.
2018 Fifth Annual Juried Art Show, Piedmont Center for the Arts, Piedmont, California.
Jurors: Carin Adams & Jenny Gheith
2017 The Group Show and Sale 2017, Delamater Conference Center, Rhinebeck, New York.
2017 Rock, Paper, Scissors, Metal, Wood. Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York.
2017 TEDxOakland: Shaping Tomorrow, Oakland, California.
2017 With Liberty and Justice for Some, Berkeley Art Center, Berkeley, California.
2017 Paper Works 2017, Upstream Gallery, Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. Juror: Susan Hoeltzel
2017 Light, Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York.
2017 Nasty Women Oakland Exhibition, Omi Gallery @ Impact Hub, Oakland, California.
2017 Erotica Show, Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2017 Local Love Craft Market, CelerySpace, Berkeley, California
2017 11th Annual Social Justice Symposium, Berkeley, California
2016 The Good Craft Holiday Market, Celery Space, Berkeley, California
2016 The 39th Annual Group Holiday Sale, Delamater Conference Center of the Beekman Arms, Rhinebeck, New York
2016 The Holiday Show, Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2016 Civic Center Art Exhibition, Berkeley Martin Luther King Civic Center, Berkeley, California
2016 Chiaroscuro; Play on Light and Dark, Tivoli Artist Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2015 Civic Center Art Exhibition, Berkeley Martin Luther King Civic Center, Berkeley, California
2015 Vol. 29 of Studio Visit Magazine, Boston, Massachussets, 45.
2015 BART Gallery, Pop Up Underground, Bay Area, California
2015 Art and Paper Competition, Arterie Fine Arts, Naperville, Illinois
2015 The Art of Heirloom, Philadelphia Flower Show, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2015 Red, Russian River Art Gallery, Guerneville, California
2015 Free Yano Benefit Art Show, Pop Up Art Venue, Oakland, California
2014 Two-Person Exhibition, The Great Outdoors, Tivoli Artists’ Gallery, Tivoli, New York (with painter, Mary Untalan)
2014 Life on the Lakes, Paul Smiths’ Visitor Interpretive Center, Saranac Lake, New York
2014 March Group Show, The Boxcar Gallery, Greenfield, Massachusetts
2013 Holiday Show, Tivoli Artists’ Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2013 Two-Person Exhibition, New Moon Art Show: Wild and True, Paul Smiths’ Visitor Interpretive Center, Saranac, New York (with photographer, Karla Brieant)
2013 Large Works, The S.P.A.C.E. Gallery, Burlington, Vermont
2012 Senior Thesis Exhibition, Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery, Saratoga Springs, New York
2012 Student Juried Exhibition, Schick Art Gallery, Saratoga Springs, New York
2011 Student Art in the Library, Lucy Scribner Library, Saratoga Springs, New York
2011 Student Juried Exhibition, Schick Art Gallery, Saratoga Springs, New York
2019 The Group Show and Sale 2019, Delamater Conference Center, Rhinebeck, New York.
2018 The Holiday Show, Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2018 The Group Show and Sale 2018, Delamater Conference Center, Rhinebeck, New York.
2018 Fifth Annual Juried Art Show, Piedmont Center for the Arts, Piedmont, California.
Jurors: Carin Adams & Jenny Gheith
2017 The Group Show and Sale 2017, Delamater Conference Center, Rhinebeck, New York.
2017 Rock, Paper, Scissors, Metal, Wood. Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York.
2017 TEDxOakland: Shaping Tomorrow, Oakland, California.
2017 With Liberty and Justice for Some, Berkeley Art Center, Berkeley, California.
2017 Paper Works 2017, Upstream Gallery, Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. Juror: Susan Hoeltzel
2017 Light, Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York.
2017 Nasty Women Oakland Exhibition, Omi Gallery @ Impact Hub, Oakland, California.
2017 Erotica Show, Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2017 Local Love Craft Market, CelerySpace, Berkeley, California
2017 11th Annual Social Justice Symposium, Berkeley, California
2016 The Good Craft Holiday Market, Celery Space, Berkeley, California
2016 The 39th Annual Group Holiday Sale, Delamater Conference Center of the Beekman Arms, Rhinebeck, New York
2016 The Holiday Show, Tivoli Artists Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2016 Civic Center Art Exhibition, Berkeley Martin Luther King Civic Center, Berkeley, California
2016 Chiaroscuro; Play on Light and Dark, Tivoli Artist Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2015 Civic Center Art Exhibition, Berkeley Martin Luther King Civic Center, Berkeley, California
2015 Vol. 29 of Studio Visit Magazine, Boston, Massachussets, 45.
2015 BART Gallery, Pop Up Underground, Bay Area, California
2015 Art and Paper Competition, Arterie Fine Arts, Naperville, Illinois
2015 The Art of Heirloom, Philadelphia Flower Show, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2015 Red, Russian River Art Gallery, Guerneville, California
2015 Free Yano Benefit Art Show, Pop Up Art Venue, Oakland, California
2014 Two-Person Exhibition, The Great Outdoors, Tivoli Artists’ Gallery, Tivoli, New York (with painter, Mary Untalan)
2014 Life on the Lakes, Paul Smiths’ Visitor Interpretive Center, Saranac Lake, New York
2014 March Group Show, The Boxcar Gallery, Greenfield, Massachusetts
2013 Holiday Show, Tivoli Artists’ Gallery, Tivoli, New York
2013 Two-Person Exhibition, New Moon Art Show: Wild and True, Paul Smiths’ Visitor Interpretive Center, Saranac, New York (with photographer, Karla Brieant)
2013 Large Works, The S.P.A.C.E. Gallery, Burlington, Vermont
2012 Senior Thesis Exhibition, Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery, Saratoga Springs, New York
2012 Student Juried Exhibition, Schick Art Gallery, Saratoga Springs, New York
2011 Student Art in the Library, Lucy Scribner Library, Saratoga Springs, New York
2011 Student Juried Exhibition, Schick Art Gallery, Saratoga Springs, New York
COLLECTIONS
2016 Case Western Reserve University, Health Services Center, Cleveland, Ohio
2015 Hudson Headwaters Health Network, Warrensburg Health Center, Warrensburg, New York. Curator: Victoria Palermo
2015 Hudson Headwaters Health Network, Warrensburg Health Center, Warrensburg, New York. Curator: Victoria Palermo
PRINT MEDIA
2016 Featured Painter in Blueline Literary Magazine Vol. XXXVII, Potsdam, New York, Summer 2016:
p 97 - 99.
2015 Vol. 29 of Studio Visit Magazine, Boston, Massachusetts, February 2015. 45.
p 97 - 99.
2015 Vol. 29 of Studio Visit Magazine, Boston, Massachusetts, February 2015. 45.
FREELANCE DESIGN WORK
2017 Henry Jamison, The Wilds album artwork, Burlington, Vermont.
2016 Catalyst Project, Spring and Fall fundraising letter design, San Francisco, California.
2016 North American Society for the Study of Romanticism, conference name tag design, Berkeley, California.
2015 Catalyst Project, Spring and Fall fundraising letter design, San Francisco, California.
2014 Glow-on-the-Go Juices, product label and menu design, Rhinebeck, New York.
2014 Angus Davidson, DIV III performance poster and postcard design, Northampton, Massachusetts.
2013 Songadeewin Camp, summer theme shirt design, Salisbury, Vermont.
2016 Catalyst Project, Spring and Fall fundraising letter design, San Francisco, California.
2016 North American Society for the Study of Romanticism, conference name tag design, Berkeley, California.
2015 Catalyst Project, Spring and Fall fundraising letter design, San Francisco, California.
2014 Glow-on-the-Go Juices, product label and menu design, Rhinebeck, New York.
2014 Angus Davidson, DIV III performance poster and postcard design, Northampton, Massachusetts.
2013 Songadeewin Camp, summer theme shirt design, Salisbury, Vermont.
