Charlene Ashley, (American, b. 1953)
"O'DELLA", (CHARCOAL PORTRAIT)

"O'DELLA", (CHARCOAL PORTRAIT)
Artist: Charlene Ashley,(American, b. 1953)
Catalogue#: 00559
Medium: Original Charcoal
Date/Period: 1999
Dimensions: 12 1/4 x 8 3/4"
Origin: St. Petersburg, FL
Labels/Annotations: Signed On Recto in Charcoal

MATERIALS: THIS PIECE IS ON ACID FREE STRATHMORE DRAWING PAPER. ENCLOSED IN POLYPROPOLENE, ARCHIVAL PRESENTATION POCKET.

ABOUT CHARLENE ASHLEY:: American artist Charlene Ashley forged an independent career from a very young age in Kentucky. Her intuitive mastery of interdisciplinary mediums included oil and acrylic paintings, watercolors, colored pencils and pastels. Yet with the progression of time it was her beloved charcoal medium which captivates her to this day as a tool of inventive portraiture and focus. Ashley's style and imagination have remained fresh and unadulterated, rather than attempting to adopt the "photo-realistic" penchant of other well known charcoal artists such as Robert Longo or Dan Pyle. Yet, like Pyle, she too had virtually no formal training and thus no need to parade any particular school of thought beyond her own instincts.

Nonetheless she does describe getting more serious about her oeuvre in 1990 when she immersed herself in creating countless oil paintings that were inspired not only by the insatiable need for expression, but also by the many television artists of that time. She recounts making 'happy mistakes' that led her deeper into art fever, which in turn segued into greater public demand to purchase her inventory; thwarting the need for a small warehouse as her clientele burgeoned beyond the United States into Europe. Eventually life took a more serious turn and in response she demurred over her art, never knowing if or when she would return to her brushes and charcoal sticks.

Yet Ashley now intimates that the pendulum has once more swung her way with a fervent desire and inspiration over the fascinating world of art, that in turn has led to her release of unseen works archived in her private collection. In addition, she has afforded the public an opportunity to witness the latest turn of her legacy in which she incorporates 'chiaroscuro' into her charcoals in a manner uniquely suited again to her own style, rather than renditioning Caravaggio. For this reincarnated artist, the path of awe-inspiring beauty and tranquility is what motivates both she and her public.

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