By Sophia Sullivan, Arts & Culture Editor
In a world run rampant with troubles, conflicts, and hardships, it can be extremely difficult to find joy and beauty in everyday life.
But, Marissa Allen, a first-year master’s student at Saint Leo University, is finding ways to make it just a little bit easier—through art.
With an undergraduate degree in elementary education and a minor in art, and now studying instructional design, Allen is dedicated to inspiring others, in multiple ways. To truly understand how she does this, it is essential to go back to the beginning.
“I think I started getting serious about art itself when I was in elementary school,” remembered Allen.
She began drawing characters and things that already existed outside of her imagination, like Super Mario Brothers. Later, her dad gave her a challenge: to draw people from her own head. With that, Allen decided to draw her own fashion models, as she loves fashion.
Her passion for painting didn’t come to fruition until the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
“I’ve always been an artist,” said Allan, “but I’ve been a serious artist basically from high school to now.”
Allen dabbles in multiple styles and mediums, from digital, to charcoal, to watercolor, to acrylic, and most recently, gouache, which is a mixture between watercolor and acrylic painting. Now, Allen describes her art style as “indicative of embracing one’s purist features.”
“My favorite thing is to draw lips,” said Allen. “A lot of African Americans are discouraged for having exaggerated or larger features, and that’s my favorite thing.”
After sharing that she herself has battled with her image and self-worth, her mission and passion in her own art shines through brightly.
“I hope a lot of my paintings exude confidence and elegance,” said Allen.
One of her favorite pieces, a large portrait of a Native American woman, accomplished just that.
“She just exuded the most beautiful and strong sense of femininity that I’ve ever created,” mused Allen.
She loved this work because of its accuracy to Indigenous women’s appearances, a group that is often misrepresented or underrepresented.
“Of course, no one likes stereotypes,” said Allen. “But if I do include a stereotype, it will be one that is often attacked.”
Allen’s dedication to the criticism of stereotyping and empowering not only women, but all, to feel comfortable and confidence in their own skin is essential to art and the world in general.
However, a project that Allen holds near and dear to her heart is the children’s book that she made with her mom. The book is dedicated to Allen’s little sister, who passed away as a baby.
The book, “Milan Takes a Bow,” is an ode to the life Allen’s sister could have led. She describes it as her “little sister’s footprint in the world.”
“She died before she could even walk, this is her stance in the world. This is her in the world. This is her being able to explore the joys of being a toddler, being a kid, and being a girl.”
By combining two methods of art, writing and drawing, Allen, along with her mother, gave a voice to the voiceless.
From here, Allen’s dream is to one day open an art gallery where she can showcase her designs. She would love to include interactive galleries and present her journey through different mediums. But, of course, she plans to teach on the side.
“I just want people to feel the purest forms of joy. I just want people to smile.”
With a brightly smiling face exuding excitement, Allen closed off the interview with a statement that is very telling of the person she is.
“It’s just me putting my life on the canvas. I’m not really striving toward delivering any grand message. If anything, my grand message is this is me, and this is what I do. This is what I love to do.”
If you’d like to support or view Allen’s work, there are multiple ways to do so. On April 26, she will be participating in the Dade City Art Walk, where she intends to have roughly 30 pieces of original work on display. If you can’t make it, her art is also showcased on her Instagram account, @blacklenses16.
