Ellen King

About

Ellen Armer King grew up in Los Angeles, CA where she began winning local art contests as a girl. She attended college at Oregon State University and finished her education at Cal State Northridge. In her early 20s, she moved to Europe to visit museums and learn from the masters. She lived in Haarlem, Holland for one year and Paris, France for three years, where she studied French and art at the Sorbonne. In Paris, King discovered her passion and love for teaching — what she describes as "a psychological challenge: taking thoughts and making them clear, succinct, and inspiring to herself for her students." Back in Los Angeles, she began her 30-year career at the Brentwood Art Center, where she educated and trained new teachers, designed curriculum, and implemented programs for some of the city's most prestigious institutions, including the J. Paul Getty Museum. King credits Jim Dine, Richard Diebenkorn, and Eric Fischl among her artistic heroes and greatest influences.Today, King's mixed media work is vivid, fiery, teeming with energy, sometimes subtle but always alive. Her Southern California roots have influenced her love of bright, rich illuminated color. She currently resides in Manhattan Beach, CA, where the sun, sand and sea provide endless inspiration. Her ongoing body of work grows out of her search for honest expression. "We all have something to say to the world," King says. "Painting is my way of finding a universal truth, revealing our humanity, our vulnerability, and our grace."

Artist Statement

I've always loved opposition and resolution in art and in life. That's why I love using different mediums together to create that opposition, layers and hopefully, a cohesive outcome. Be it the glow of metallic paint mixed with the sensitivity or shocking boldness of floral blooms, the human form or the intrinsic beauty of a bird. They seem in opposition yet are deeply routed in nature. I have been exploring this duality since I began making art as a child. Our bodies emulate the trees, rivers, mountains, sky, clouds . I love the dichotomy and equality. I thrive on color be it vivid, fiery teeming with energy or soft, muted, subtle, all gorgeous all present. The textures created by mixing media illuminate the multi layers of the work and of our lives. The process becomes the journey and exploration of discovery. It's the miracle of art making. We find the connection between ourselves and the world. Please enjoy.