Lot 97A
Allison Merriweather (American, b. 1962). Fantastical Farm Scene. Oil on board, n.d. Signed at lower right. This vibrant and whimsical untitled painting by American outsider artist Allison Merriweather is a richly imagined tableau of rural life, infused with magical realism and symbolic flourishes. Set against a dreamy lavender sky, the scene centers on a stylized purple house with a red roof and door, flanked by blooming flower boxes. In the upper left window, a single wide-eyed figure gazes out and raises a hand in a subtle wave - an enigmatic gesture that hints at both welcome and mystery. Above the house, a cream-colored angel with dark hair soars through the sky, while a pair of crows adds a contrasting note of wildness - one perched calmly on the rooftop spire and the other caught mid-flight to the right. Beneath the house, a violet-hued angel stands with outstretched wings, clutching a delicate flower in both hands, exuding a serene and watchful presence. Size: 20" W x 15" H (50.8 cm x 38.1 cm)
The surrounding countryside teems with activity and detail: rolling green hills, trees laden with orange fruit, and neatly fenced enclosures. A black cat sits in front of the red door like a silent guardian, while patterned black birds and a white hen peck in the grass nearby. Two cows - one black and one white - graze peacefully in the midground, while to the right, a woman in a lilac hat and burgundy dress tends to an orderly field of crops. Merriweather's use of flat, vibrant color and simplified forms recalls the traditions of American folk and outsider art, blending everyday rural life with a dreamlike atmosphere. Her imagery - simultaneously grounded and otherworldly - invites the viewer into a world where labor, nature, and the divine coexist in vivid harmony. This painting exemplifies her singular visual language and emotive storytelling, celebrating both the mystery and beauty of the everyday.
About the artist: "Allison Merriweather is a true 'outsider' artist. She is compelled to paint by a force she does not understand. She uses symbolism, often repeated across various works, in both large and small ways. The ferocious animals in many of her works are an obvious theme; the little green grasshopper which hops among many of her canvases is a less obvious one.
Allison Merriweather is a dreamer and a visionary. Her highly charged, instantly recognizable style has gained wide acclaim among the viewing public. Reality is rearranged and transformed in her mind into intensely personal visions which she then transfers to canvas with directness, freshness, and a 'passionate uniqueness' as one critic put it, obeying no rules but those of her imagination. Allison's paintings possess a mysterious poetry. Above all she is a masterful storyteller, putting elements within our grasp and counting on the viewer to draw the correct conclusions.
Allison has had an incredible number of one-woman exhibitions, many in California at venues including the Upstairs Gallery, The Lab, the Wells Fargo Exhibition Room, the American Institute of Architecture, and others. Her prints have been featured at the American Visionary Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. At last count, she has participated in almost thirty juried shows with many awards and publications including Artweek and Man In Nature. Her paintings are in many corporate collections among them are The Tanaka Group, Tokyo, Intersource Group, Los Angeles, and Altec Digital Industries, Redwood City, California." (source: artist's bio on "Trivia: Voices of Feminism" website)
Provenance: private Rochester, Minnesota, USA collection, acquired from 1990 -1998
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#192639
- Condition: Signed at lower right. A few minuscule nicks to upper left corner and right edge, but, otherwise, painting is in excellent overall condition.
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