ABOUT
Alanna Hernandez (b. 1988) grew up on Cape Cod, and graduated from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2010, where she earned a B.A. in Middle East Studies. During this time she gained some formal art training, as well as education in art history, history, and language. After graduating, she continued her art practice while training in yoga and meditation. Her work is a culmination of this combination of formal education in the arts and humanities, training in yoga and meditation, and self-taught art skills. She moved to Midcoast Maine in 2018 and currently resides in Union, Maine.
Alanna creates abstract work about trauma and human relationships. She is interested in how trauma is felt in our bodies, how it interrupts our lives, and how it ripples down through communities and generations. She uses abstract ribbon forms that are interrupted by external objects to explore these ideas. Her composition uses movement, and tension to create visual flow and focal points. These drawings are created with layers of crosshatched colored pencil and wax pastel. The process is meditative and the overall effect is serene, contrasting with the difficult metaphorical themes of the work.
CV
Education:
2010 University of Massachusetts Amherst, Bachelor of Arts in Middle East Studies.
Exhibitions:
2023 ARTFEEDS, group exhibition and benefit auction, Page Gallery and AIO Food Pantry, Camden, ME
2023 UNDER THE STRAIN, solo exhibition, Soho Revue Gallery, London, UK
2023 HOMECOMING, group exhibition and benefit auction, 82 Parris, Portland, ME
2023 SPRING, group exhibition, Primary Projects, Miami, FL
2023 LATENT DREAMING, group exhibition, Haus of Contemporary and AucArt, Hong Kong
2023 CENTER FOR MAINE CONTEMPORARY ART BIENNIAL, juried group exhibition, Center for Maine Contemporary Art, Rockland, ME
2022 SENSE STREAM Purslane Art, online solo exhibition to benefit charity, Purslane Art, London UK. https://www.purslane.co.uk/sense-stream-alanna-hernandez
2022 INSIDE DRAFTSWOMEN, group exhibition curated by Christine Brey, Feinkunst Kruger, Hamburg, Germany.
2022 ARTPM, group exhibition, Buoy Gallery, Kittery, ME.
2022 DRAWING WITHIN, solo exhibition, Interloc Projects, Rockland, ME
2021 LAUNDRY DAY 3, community exhibition and auction, New Systems Exhibitions, Portland, ME.
2021 IN COLOR, juried exhibition, Cape Cod Cultural Center, South Yarmouth MA
2019 Archipelago, The Island Institute Store, Rockland ME
2018 PLAY: ART INSPIRED BY CHILDRENS’ ART, juried exhibition, The Harlow Gallery,
Hallowell, ME
2018 HEALING NATURE: HUMAN VISION, ART, & THE ENVIRONMENT, juried exhibtion,
Cape Cod Museum of Art, Dennis, MA
Press:
2023 March 22, The New York Times, "Hong Kong's New Kids on the Block", NY, USA
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/22/arts/design/hong-kong-galleries-new.html?searchResultPosition=5
2023 February 12, The Portland Press Herald, "Identity, Environment, and Resourcefulness all Served up at The Excellent CMCA Biennial", Portland, ME, USA https://www.pressherald.com/2023/02/12/identity-environment-and-resourcefulness-all-served-up-at-the-excellent-cmca-biennial/
2022 June, L'Officiel Mexico, "Trauma and human relationships under the artistic magnifying glass of Alanna Hernandez", https://www.lofficielmexico.com/arte-y-cultura/alanna-hernandez-arte-contemporaneo
2022 May, ArtMaze Magazine, Issue #27, London, UK
2022 January Booooooom Artist Spotlight, https://www.booooooom.com/2022/02/01/artist-spotlight-alanna-hernandez/
2021 August, ArtMaze Magazine, Issue #23, Curated by Julie Tuyet Curtiss, London, UK
2017 December, Birdy Magazine, Denver, CO
2017 August, Birdy Magazine, Denver, CO
2017 July, Birdy Magazine, Denver, CO
Illustration Clients:
2019-2020 Maine Department of Education, Harvest of the Month Project,
https://www.maine.gov/doe/harvestofthemonth/resources
Teaching:
Center for Maine Contemporary Art, Guest Teaching Artist. Art camps and workshops for kids and adults. ArtCamp: People and Portraits 6/11/22-6/14/22, and ArtLab 3/5/22.
Leaps of Imagination, Assistant Teaching Artist. In-school art programs for elementary students. 2018-2019, and 2021-2022.