Alison Underwood Featured as Artist of the Week on The Nashville Sign

The Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville, Blackbird Media, and F&M Bank have teamed up to present the Artist of the Week on The Nashville Sign. This week, Alison Underwood is featured!

Alison grew up in a small town in rural Kentucky. She holds a B.A. in Studio Art from The University of Louisville and an M.A. in History of Design and Curatorial Studies from Parsons/Cooper Hewitt in New York City. She currently lives and works from her studio in Nashville, Tennessee.

Artist Statement:
The nature of desire is to be unsatisfied. The liminal space between wanting and having has always been irresistible. I have been slowly developing a visual vocabulary to examine the psychology of desire and the choices one makes in order to satisfy or defer it. My work spans most 2D practices, including painting, printmaking, collage, and digital and imagery of ropes, hair, disembodied limbs, fabric, plants, portals and flat geometries dominate my meaning/image making. These symbols help me to bring a visual dimension to the fear and anticipation that exists at the threshold of a choice, and the tension that permeates the moment before one boards a train, sends a text, takes a bite, leans into a kiss. Desires that are not culturally sanctioned, that flirt with the realm of the grotesque, or demand a certain sacrifice in their pursuit, are the most compelling to me. A double edge can serve to heighten intensity, the way salt causes the flavors in a dish to bloom. To that end, I strive to introduce darkness at the edges of my work while maintaining lush imagery and serpentine line-work.

Learn more about Alison’s work on her website.


Want to be featured on The Nashville Sign? Visual artists working in any medium, who are members* of the Arts & Business Council at the Basic Level ($30 annually) or above, are eligible to apply for Artist of the Week on The Nashville Sign.

*Those unable to become members due to financial barriers can be granted a waiver. Contact us at info@abcnashville.org to be confidentially considered for a waiver.