ALAN RYALL MARINE ART

“My paintings depict a variety of marine subjects in settings that convey the feelings and moods of the sea – the exhilaration of sailing in a stiff breeze on San Francisco Bay, the tranquility of a misty Chesapeake dawn, the melancholy of a mothballed warship being towed out to sea for disposal, or the mood of anticipation aboard a British schooner hunting for slavers on the African coast.”

Alan credits an aunt who drew clothing ads for San Francisco department stores with mentoring his first attempts at pen-and-ink sketching, and his drawing skill is still remembered by his early classmates. After junior college he shelved artistic endeavors for several decades to pursue more pressing activities -- three years in the Army (Russian language and various Signal Corps schools), marriage to Floriana de Nola, kids Mike and Pam, AB degree in geology and PhD in geophysics, and a career in teaching, research and government program management. He started the academic program in geophysics at the University of Nevada-Reno, conducted studies of earth structure, earthquake and volcanic processes, and research to improve nuclear test ban treaty verification, and he participated in US/USSR test ban negotiations in Geneva. Along the way his work took him to the western U.S., Hawaii, Washington DC, Europe, and numerous locations in Russia and Central Asia.

While working in Virginia toward the end of this interlude, Alan took up sailing, ship modeling and maritime history, and made frequent visits to the superb maritime museums along the eastern seaboard. In 1987, with particular inspiration from a Naval Academy exhibition of William Gilkerson’s drawings and paintings of “The Ships of John Paul Jones,” he began thinking about combining his nautical interests to pursue a new career in marine art. In 1994 he and Flori returned to California and over a seven-year period he completed a comprehensive program of art courses under Bill Paskewitz at Las Positas College in Livermore.

Starting in 1999 with regular participation and occasional awards in regional shows and art festivals, Alan has had paintings in juried and/or invitational maritime art exhibitions in museums on both the west and east coasts and has won numerous awards in those shows. He completed book jacket paintings for four novels dealing with the American Revolution. He is a signature member of both the American Society of Marine Artists and the International Society of Marine Painters, and recently joined the Coast Guard Art Program. In 2008 he was elected as one of two ASMA Representatives for the western US, and in 2009 he was appointed to the ASMA Board of Directors. His paintings have been shown in fine art galleries in San Diego, Tiburon, Sausalito, Danville, Blackhawk, Morro Bay and Avila Beach, CA; Coos Bay, OR; Seattle, WA; Williamsburg, VA; and Rollinsford, NH.

Alan and Flori live and work in Livermore, CA, and Alan continues to sail occasionally on San Francisco Bay.

Selected Group Exhibits

2010   17th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR (award)
2010   ISMP International Waters Exhibit, Ventura County Maritime Museum, Oxnard, CA
2010   Stockton Art League Exhibit, Haggin Museum, Stockton, CA
2009   16th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR
2009   Aqueous IV Exhibit, Ventura County Maritime Museum, Oxnard, CA
2008   15th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR
2008   ASMA New England Exhibition, Cape Cod Cultural Center, S. Yarmouth, MA; and two other museums
2008   30th Anniversary ASMA Exhibition, Chase Center on the Riverfront, Wilmington, DE, and four other museums
2007   Maritime Museum of San Diego/Am. Soc. Marine Artists, Maritime Artwork (2 awards)
2007   14th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR
2006   13th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR
2005    Aqueous III Exhibit, Ventura County Maritime Museum, Oxnard, CA
2005   12th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR
2004   11th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR
2004    Benefit exhibit for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Williamsburg, VA
2003   10th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR (award)
2002   Aqueous II Exhibit, Ventura County Maritime Museum, Oxnard, CA
2002   9th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR (award)
2002   Northwest Marine Art Show, The Marine Gallery, Kirkland, WA
2001    12th National ASMA Exhibition, Dennis, MA and Wilmington, DE
2001   8th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR
2000   Aqueous Exhibit, Ventura County Maritime Museum, Oxnard, CA
2000   7th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, OR (award)
2000   Pleasanton Art League show, Pleasanton, CA (award)
2000   7th All-California Community College Exhibition, Riverside, CA (award)
1999   6th Annual Maritime Art Exhibit, Coos Art Museum,Coos Bay, OR
1998   Pleasanton Art League show, Pleasanton, CA (award)