Aleah Young | SUNY Oswego

Aleah Young
Lowville, NY
[email protected]

BFA Fine Art, Painting

Biography

Aleah Young is an artist born and raised in Lowville, New York. After receiving a National Scholastics Gold Medal for an acrylic painting she did her senior year of high school, she knew that she wanted to continue her art studies. Aleah received her Associate’s Degree in Fine Arts at Mohawk Valley Community College, where she found her love for oil paints. After transferring to SUNY Oswego, she continued developing her skills and has shown work at the 2020 and 2021 student exhibitions and the Lakeside Statewide show. She will graduate in May 2021 with her Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts with a concentration in Painting. After graduating, Aleah plans to take what she has learned from school and grow her art career. She plans on continuing to develop her skills and get her Master’s in Fine Arts in Painting in the future.

Artist Statement

While my art has a variety of subjects, it focuses on capturing precious moments that give the viewer a glimpse into my life and spark emotion. I am inspired by past artists like Paul Cézanne and Edward Hopper, as well as contemporary artists like Ian Cumberland and Alex Kanevsky. I knew from a young age that I wanted to be an artist and focused a lot of my time on drawing.

I work primarily with oil paint, using saturated color, unblended brushstrokes, and glazes to give my art pieces an emotional resonance. I find most of my inspiration through my life. I am constantly looking at my surroundings and thinking about how I would depict them through paint. I work a lot with the figure because I’m drawn to its complexity and how easy it creates a connection with the viewer. Art is the only thing I have never questioned myself about because I find fulfillment in creating it. Whether I am painting a scene from my childhood or a still life, my art allows me to reflect on my state of mind. I aim for my art to evoke sonder within the viewer, a little moment of clarity where they realize that everyone has a life that is just as interesting and complex as their own.

This oil painting shows an outdoor scene of a girl who is sitting in a white plastic chair wearing a relay for life shirt with a girl scout vest covered in badges and pins. She sits relaxed, gazing into the viewer, with her right pointer finger sinking into her cheek, helping her head stay up. Behind her there are two tables, one is stacked with wrapped gifts and gift bags, varying in shades of yellow, purple, pink, and green. To the left of the girl, there is another person sitting, but only her knee, thig

First Friday of June
Oil on wood board
9”x12”
2020
Painting VI
This oil painting shows an outdoor scene of a girl who is sitting in a white plastic chair wearing a relay for life shirt with a girl scout vest covered in badges and pins. She sits relaxed, gazing into the viewer, with her right pointer finger sinking into her cheek, helping her head stay up. Behind her there are two tables, one is stacked with wrapped gifts and gift bags, varying in shades of yellow, purple, pink, and green. To the left of the girl, there is another person sitting, but only her knee, thigh, and her elbow are shown.

This is a panoramic scene of a green room. We can see the same figure throughout the room. To the left there is a wooden secretary style desk. Above the desk there doors with glass windows. There are objects sitting on the shelfs behind the glass, some makeup brushes, contact solution, deodorant, and books. They are all defined by simple blocks of color and quick brush strokes. Sitting at the desk there is a girl looking in a book with her forehead resting on her fingertips. Her brown hair covers most of he

A Day in the life
Oil on Canvas
36” x 72”
2021
Advanced Drawing and Painting
This is a panoramic scene of a green room. We can see the same figure throughout the room. To the left there is a wooden secretary style desk. Above the desk there doors with glass windows. There are objects sitting on the shelfs behind the glass, some makeup brushes, contact solution, deodorant, and books. They are all defined by simple blocks of color and quick brush strokes. Sitting at the desk there is a girl looking in a book with her forehead resting on her fingertips. Her brown hair covers most of her face. Another figure is falling back into the computer chair, her hands covering her eyes moving into her hair. Behind these figures there is a closet and a poster on the wall. The corner of the room is placed just a little to the right of the painting. There is a dresser with a television on it. In front of the dresser there seems to be two figures merged together. One facing the dresser putting clothes away and the other in the action of folding clothes. Between the two sets of figures there is a window, a hamper, a backpack, and another figure sitting on the floor with her legs crossed looking at her phone. Out the window, we can see a blue sky with bare trees and a parking lot with a fence and some cars. To the right of the figure in front of the dresser there is a window, a bedside table, and a bed with a figure lying down on it. The figure of the bed has their head towards the viewer. Beside this figure there is a blanket. Out the window to the right is the side of a house.

This highly saturated painting shows three figures in the snow. The man on the left is standing with his right side facing the viewer, wearing a black coat, a bright orange winter hat. He is holding a shovel and looking towards the viewer. To the right of him, there are two girls that are crouched down, The girl in the middle is wearing a pink set of snow pants and a winter hat with teddy bears on it. The girl to the far right is looking down in front of her, wearing a blue set of snow pants with a matching

Snow Day
Oil on wood board
9”x 12”
2020
Painting IV
This highly saturated painting shows three figures in the snow. The man on the left is standing with his right side facing the viewer, wearing a black coat, a bright orange winter hat. He is holding a shovel and looking towards the viewer. To the right of him, there are two girls that are crouched down, The girl in the middle is wearing a pink set of snow pants and a winter hat with teddy bears on it. The girl to the far right is looking down in front of her, wearing a blue set of snow pants with a matching blue winter hat. Behind the figures, there is a tan car that is covered in a thin layer of snow. There are trees in the distance and a house behind them. A window on the house is shown behind the figure of the man.

This watercolor is a self portrait. It shows a face and shoulders from above, with the figure laying down in the grass. It is presented with the face upside down to the viewer.

Upside Down
Watercolor
18”x24”
2020
Advanced Painting and Drawing
This watercolor is a self portrait. It shows a face and shoulders from above, with the figure laying down in the grass. It is presented with the face upside down to the viewer.

Self Portrait
Charcoal
24” x 18”
2020
This is a charcoal self portrait.

This painting features a set of hands, one coming out from a body of water and the other hand grabbing and pulling the hand up. The horizon line is just above halfway of the painting. Clouds emerge from the dark background.

The Draw
Oil on Canvas
30” x 40”
2019
Painting III
This painting features a set of hands, one coming out from a body of water and the other hand grabbing and pulling the hand up. The horizon line is just above halfway of the painting. Clouds emerge from the dark background.

This is an oil painting of a girl holding her cat. The cat is orange with green eyes and sits in front of the girl’s chest, being held by the girl's interlocked arms. The girl is wearing a pink shirt and her hair is being held back by a black headband, but her bangs hide some of her forehead and part of her left eye. Behind them is the corner of a pink room with red trim. To the left there is the inside of the threshold. There is a dark wooded desk and chair behind them in the corner.

Poohbear and Me
Oil on wood board
9” x 12”
2020
Painting IV
This is an oil painting of a girl holding her cat. The cat is orange with green eyes and sits in front of the girl’s chest, being held by the girl's interlocked arms. The girl is wearing a pink shirt and her hair is being held back by a black headband, but her bangs hide some of her forehead and part of her left eye. Behind them is the corner of a pink room with red trim. To the left there is the inside of the threshold. There is a dark wooded desk and chair behind them in the corner.

This piece is an oil painting depicting a nude figure looking into the mirror with the reflection’s face meeting eye contact with the viewer. The figure looking into the mirror blocks the front side of the reflection, making only the shoulders, hips, and feet visible for that figure. The mirror is placed on a wood floor, leaning against a dark blue wall with white trim. Behind the figure, we can see subtle details of a bedroom environment; a rud, a dresser with a tv, and a window. The skintone has a variety

Reflect
Oil on canvas
30”x60”
2020
Advanced Drawing and Painting
This piece is an oil painting depicting a nude figure looking into the mirror with the reflection’s face meeting eye contact with the viewer. The figure looking into the mirror blocks the front side of the reflection, making only the shoulders, hips, and feet visible for that figure. The mirror is placed on a wood floor, leaning against a dark blue wall with white trim. Behind the figure, we can see subtle details of a bedroom environment; a rug, a dresser with a tv, and a window. The skin tone has a variety of colors that were built by glazing, giving the skin a luminosity.

This is a painting of a girl actively making pancakes. She is wearing a pink shirt with a red apron. Her hair is in a low ponytail, but some of it falls forward and covers some of her face. She is whisking a batter that is in a glass bowl on a table. On the table we can see a box of pancake mix and some measuring cups. Behind the figure is a fridge with many magnets and pictures placed upon it, all painted with simple broken down brushstrokes and blocks of color. The color of the room is light blue with a d

In the Kitchen
Oil on wood board
9” x 12”
2020
Painting IV
This is a painting of a girl actively making pancakes. She is wearing a pink shirt with a red apron. Her hair is in a low ponytail, but some of it falls forward and covers some of her face. She is whisking a batter that is in a glass bowl on a table. On
the table we can see a box of pancake mix and some measuring cups. Behind the figure is a fridge with many magnets and pictures placed upon it, all painted with simple broken down brushstrokes and blocks of color. The color of the room is light blue with a darker blue trim. To the right of the figure there is an entrance to another small room where we can see a washing machine.

This is a portrait of a man. It uses high saturated colors and unblended brushstrokes to construct the facial features of the mena. He has short brown hair, green eyes that are looking at the viewer, facial hair, and is wearing a blue sweatshirt. His lips have a faint smile to them.

Greg Bud
Oil on Canvas
11” x 14”
2020
Figure Painting
This is a portrait of a man. It uses high saturated colors and unblended brushstrokes to construct the facial features of the mena. He has short brown hair, green eyes that are looking at the viewer, facial hair, and is wearing a blue sweatshirt. His lips have a faint smile to them.

This painting is a still life of a pillow. The pillow is sitting upright with it’s pillow case creating interesting folds throughout. The lighting of this piece makes it appear as if the pillow is glowing. There is a red light coming from the back of the pillow, a blue light coming from the bottom right corner, and a bright green light coming from the bottom left corner.

Pillow
Oil on Canvas
2019
Painting III
This painting is a still life of a pillow. The pillow is sitting upright with it’s pillow case creating interesting folds throughout. The lighting of this piece makes it appear as if the pillow is glowing. There is a red light coming from the back of the pillow, a blue light coming from the bottom right corner, and a bright green light coming from the bottom left corner.

This is a still life oil painting of a bag of Doritos sweet chili ranch chips. It uses highly saturated colors within the purple of the bag, the orange chip that is part of the label of the bad, and throughout the table that is a warm yellow.

Doritos
Oil on canvas
2021
Advanced Drawing and Painting
This is a still life oil painting of a bag of Doritos sweet chili ranch chips. It uses highly saturated colors within the purple of the bag, the orange chip that is part of the label of the bad, and throughout the table that is a warm yellow.