LAGUNA BEACH, Calif. – New works from Southern California-based abstract expressionist painter Nina K Cullen will be presented at the artist’s solo exhibition “Pixelated World” at the acclaimed Avran Art + Design Gallery at 540 South Coast Highway, #106, in Laguna Beach, Calif., opening on Saturday, September 10. The exhibit will feature various pieces from the artist’s “Pixel” series.
Over the last few years, Nina K Cullen’s work has become extremely desirable with collectors throughout the US and overseas. She is represented by three different galleries in the Southern California area. In addition to her relationship with the Avran Art + Design Gallery in Laguna Beach, where she currently lives, she is also represented by the Coda Gallery in Palm Desert, Calif., and the Emerald C Gallery, in San Diego.
As an artist, she first developed a very strong following of private collectors and design professionals in the Southwest region of the country, before her appeal broadened nationwide and beyond.
Her “Pixel” series of paintings, along with her other work, are all oils-on-canvas and have been described as “explosive.” Nina K Cullen developed a signature technique that incorporates applying heavy layers of paint with various palette knives in a cascade form. She’ll often mix several colors on her knife and drag it down to get a specific effect. When dry, she applies glazes and varnish which gives it a three-dimensional effect and also a wet appearance. When the proper lighting hits the paintings, it renders a very luminous effect.
Nina K Cullen has also exhibited at various juried art shows around the country, where her paintings sell very well. This past year alone she has sold 48 paintings at various prices, usually in the $5,000-$10,000 range.
The new pieces being shown at Avran Art + Design Gallery are all oil on 2.5-inch-thick canvas and will include Hot Summer Night, shown below and 68 by 60 inches, a cityscape featuring a sunset and brilliant water reflections.
Changing Trends, shown below and 60 by 48 inches, is a richly textured palette-knife work.
Fire Dance, shown below and measuring 72 by 48 inches, depicts a woman in silhouette.
Collage, shown below and 64 by 58 inches, is a collage of harmonious colors, while Summer By The Sea, 48 by 68 inches, is a geometric impression of seascape, seashore and backdrop mountains.
In addition to the Avran Art + Design Gallery show, Nina K Cullen will exhibit other paintings at The Coda Gallery in Palm Desert through late summer/early fall, and at Art San Diego, November 3-6.
While her true passion has always been her art, Cullen also achieved prominence as a fashion designer in the 1980s and ’90s, when she launched her own Nina K women’s line in New York City. The fashion world embraced her designs and she won the “Rising Star Award” from the National Fashion association. The label took off, and her clothing was soon in fine stores from coast to coast. Many leading fashion magazines including Vogue, Elle and Glamour featured her designs in their pages.
Upon moving to the Los Angeles area in mid 1990s, Cullen switched her focus and talent back into creating her art as a full-time career. She began painting large-scale abstract oils on canvas and soon found an audience for her work. Her art, including the vibrant “Passion” series, has since been successfully exhibited in numerous galleries and public settings, while also enhancing many private collections across the US and abroad.
Nina K Cullen has also donated art from her collection to select worthy charities, most recently giving two paintings to be auctioned off to raise funds for the Laguna College of Art + Design (LCAD) and Art-A-Fair programs that promote and provide art supplies for young artists.
Online: www.ninak-artist.com and www.avranart.com.
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