Allison Barnes

This is me at the de Young museum in San Francisco.

My name is Allison Barnes and I finally found my dream job- being an art teacher!! I have always enjoyed art, and have constantly been inspired by people, places and experiences around me.

I grew up in Cayucos, a town 25 minutes north of San Luis Obispo. My school was small all the way through 12th grade. Although school brought me blissful joy and many times disappointing heartache, I had the most wonderful high school experience because of my involvement in art, volleyball, theater arts, music, and the associated student body (ASB).

I am now living in Los Gatos, and I teach art at Broadway High School in San Jose. I enjoy playing the piano, guitar and singing/songwriting. I also love hiking, biking, trying different types of wine, and cooking.

I am so passionate about art, and extremely blessed to be a teacher and to be able to bring my skills and personality to the classroom. I am capable and qualified to teach art (k-12) and elementary school. I love children of all ages and will continue to bring the priceless knowledge of creativity, thought, and problem solving skills to their lives.  In the next five years, I plan on going back to school during the summer to get my masters in art.  This is my third year teaching, and I am learning more and more about my students, and being inspired by my students every day!  My lesson plans and instruction are centered around my student dynamic, and I’m constantly adjusting and modifying according to my students capabilities, interests, and desires in art!

Charcoal drawings. 

This piece is a composition of the journey of life. An empty sheet of music is filed with the bright lights of the city. Musicians block. Acrylic on a door. 6′ x 3′

Dry pastel on vinyl. Appropriated imagery of two images- a marine, and sadam husane and his men.  2′ x 3′

I built and stretched my own canvas. I used a long exposure photograph I took in Santa Barbara on the west side of the 101. This piece was digitally manipulated in Adobe photoshop. 47″x 47″

A “taboo” assignment my senior year in college, I chose to depict a historical event in Ireland signifying an emotional and horrific image of violence and despair in a war torn country.  Separated and far from experiencing this type of event, my collegiate colleges experienced if only a moment to commemorate the past, and hope for the future.

This image features two events.  In the foreground a woman is wiping the rails in a mall to kill the SARS virus.  The image in the background is a mosque with Afghanistan women walking in around in black- only their faces showing.  The ironies of these events are brought through with the help of appropriated imagery and pastel on vinyl.  4′x3′