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"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 Ryall’s artistic talent while growing up on the San Francisco Peninsula is still remembered by his early classmates, and he credits an aunt who was a commercial artist with inspiring his first attempts at pen-and ink-sketching. After junior college his artistic endeavors were shelved for several decades to pursue more pressing activities -- the Army, marriage, kids, degrees in geology and geophysics, and a career in teaching and research. He started the academic program in seismology at the University of Nevada, and his research activities in Academe, industry and government ranged from explosion studies of the earth’s crust, to research on earthquake prediction and volcanic activity, to the monitoring of underground nuclear explosions and finally arms control negotiations with the Former Soviet Union. 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 living in Virginia toward the end of this interlude, Ryall took up sailing, ship modeling and maritime history, and made frequent visits to the superb maritime museums along the eastern seaboard. With particular inspiration from a 1987 exhibition of William Gilkerson’s drawings and paintings of “The Ships of John Paul Jones” at the Naval Academy, he decided to combine his nautical interests and pursue a new career in marine art. On retiring he returned to California and completed a comprehensive program of art courses under Bill Paskewitz at Las Positas College in Livermore.
Ryall is now becoming established in the marine art community. His paintings have been shown in eighteen juried and/or invitational shows and have won eight awards in those exhibits. He completed book jacket paintings for four novels dealing with the American Revolution and the China Trade. He has been a member of the American Society of Marine Artists since 1998, and has been in numerous shows open only to members of that Society. One of his paintings was shown in ASMA’s 12th National Exhibition in Dennis, MA and Wilmington, DE, and was one of 15 paintings selected for an article about the exhibition in American Artist. His work has been shown in numerous museums and fine art galleries: in Coos Bay, OR; San Diego, Tiburon, Sausalito, Danville, Blackhawk, Morro Bay and Avila Beach, CA; Seattle, WA; Williamsburg, VA; and Rollinsford, NH. His paintings are in private collections in the eastern and western US and in Europe.
Alan and Flori continue to live and work in Livermore, CA, and Alan continues to sail on San Francisco Bay.
