About Ellyn

Hi! I’m Ellyn and as you can see from my art, I absolutely love color. I’m a self-taught abstract expressionist artist living in Virginia with my husband and two teenage sons. Art and creativity have always been a part of my life but haven’t moved to the forefront until recent years. I finally decided to pursue my dream of expression through bold and colorful abstract art and I spend a lot of my time covered in paint listening to music, podcasts, or audio books in my home studio. A look inside my home reveals art-covered walls, much of it my own creation.

Some of my most treasured tools include the easel I use daily and my set of palette knives, all of which belonged to my grandfather. They were later used by my mom, and were eventually passed down to me.

About My art

Opinions seem to differ as to the necessity of narrowing down one’s art style. And while I don’t think an artist should always paint the same way, I’d like to think that my differently-styled paintings are all recognizable as my work. Towards the end of 2021 I decided to move away from strictly abstract art and try painting landscapes in a way that was consistent with how I like to paint…lots of color and unique texture. I enjoy the look of paper collage and quilted fabric and set out to achieve something similar using only acrylic paint. I’m excited that my style keeps evolving and has moved more towards a combination of abstracted landscapes and funkier folk-type art.

Using acrylic paints provides me with the freedom to use unlimited combinations of vibrant palettes and luscious textures. I mix my colors on my palette as I work and rarely use them directly from the tube or jar. I am able to create texture by building up layers, scraping into the paint, using palette knives or by using any number of acrylic mediums - my favorite being modeling paste.