Biography

Alyssa Monks layers spaces and moments in her paintings, she pushes the boundaries of traditional realism by incorporating abstract elements into her work. She flips background and foreground using semi-transparent filters of glass, vinyl, steam, water and or foliage over shallow spaces.

The tension in her paintings is created by the composition and also by the surface quality itself. Each brushstroke is thickly applied, like a fossil recording every gesture and decision, evoking the energy of the handmade object. This unpredictable surface recalls the human touch, conveying her personal empathy through the work.

Alyssa’s latest solo exhibition “It’s All Under Control” was in November – January of 2021-2022 at Forum Gallery. Monks’s paintings have been the subject of numerous solo and group exhibitions including “Intimacy” at the Kunst Museum in Ahlen, Germany and “Reconfiguring the Body in American Art, 1820–2009” at the National Academy Museum of Fine Arts, New York. Her work is represented in public and private collections, including the Savannah College of Arts, the Somerset Art Association, Fullerton College, the Seavest Collection, The Bennett Collection, and the collections of George Loening, Eric Fischl, Howard Tullman, Gerrity Lansing, Danielle Steele, Alec Baldwin, and Luciano Benetton. In 2015, Alyssa gave a TED talk at Indiana University discussing her recent work, which is featured on TED.com. Recently, she was named the 16th most influential women artist alive today by Graphic Design Degree Hub. Her work was featured heavily in season 6 of the FX television series The Americans in 2018.

Born 1977 in New Jersey, Alyssa began oil painting as a child. She studied at The New School in New York and earned her B.A. from Boston College in 1999. During this time she studied painting at Lorenzo de’ Medici in Florence. She went on to earn her M.F.A. from the New York Academy of Art in 2001. She completed an artist in residency at Fullerton College in 2006 and has lectured and taught at universities and institutions worldwide. She continues to offer workshops and mentorships and lectures regularly.

 

Featured In:

 

Seed, John, and Katherine Stanek. Disrupted Realism: Paintings for a Distracted World. Schiffer Publishing, 2019, p. 136-141.
The Americans.
Television series. Season 6. 2018.
Zeller, Robert, The Figurative Artist’s Handbook: A Contemporary Guide, Monacelli Studio, 2017, p. 288-291
Artes Integradas by Andrew Sulzbach.
Ages of the Skin in Painting, Revista Colombiana de Dermatologia y Cirugia Dermatologica, Vol 25, July-September 2017, p 224.
Vision-Problems, Cognella, Inc. Academic textbook.
Se liga na lingua vol 2, Editora Moderna Ltda. Textbook.
Une Autre Forme d’ivresse by Madeleine Lefebvre. Poetry book. 2016.
Ensino Fundamental II Artes 6 Ano, Editora FTD. Elementary School textbook
Pricco, Evan. Juxtapoz Hyperreal. Gingko Press, Inc., 2014, p 32-37.
The Last Brigade, Burn Out, Kicking Records. 2014. Album cover.
Casa Del Mirto, Still, Ghost Records. 2014. Album cover.
Janeczek, Helena, and Marguerite Pozzoli. Traverser Les ténèbres. Actes Sud, 2014. Book cover.
Hall, Anne Emerson. “Meaning and Purpose: Morality and Politics in 21st C Representational Art.” The Representational Art Conference. Lecture. Essay based on the lecture included in the book The Proceedings of The Representational Art Conference 2015, California Lutheran University Press.
Moore, Lisa Lynne, and Dominique Fortier. Février. Boréal, 2013. Book cover.
What Maisie Knew. Film. 2012.
Lindner, April. This Bed Our Bodies Shaped: Poems. Able Muse Press, 2012. Book cover.
Padberg, Martina & Burkhard Leismann, Intimacy! Exhibition Catalog, Kunst Museum Ahlen, 2010, cover & p 138-139.

 

Press:

 

Daly, Meg, More Than Skin Deep. American Art Collector, November 2022, pp. 90-93

Alyssa Monks, an INTERVIEW, The Montreal Review, November 2022.

Seed, John. Alyssa Monks Captures the Energy and Anxiety of Being in Paint, Hyperallergic, September 21, 2022

Starkey, Glen. Alyssa Monks’ SLOMA Retrospective Features Large-scale Portraits of Women in Vulnerable, Intimate Contexts, New Times SLO, September 22, 2022

Cole, Margherita. Hazy Figures Express the Anguish of Isolation in Hyperrealistic Paintings, My Modern Met, April 10, 2022

Kuspit, Donald. Alyssa Monks: Pandemic Self-Portraits, White Hot Magazine, December 10, 2021

Redding, Lauren Amalia. Life is But a Dream: Alyssa Monks at Forum Gallery, The Blue Review, November, 29, 2021

Stamberg, Susan. ‘Drawing Inspiration’ From Artists Who Make Their Mark On Paper, Not Canvas, NPR, April 22, 2021

PODCAST INTERVIEW Art Grind, Challenging Perception, Art Grind Podcast, March, 2021, episode 57

PODCAST INTERVIEW Dalton, John, Uncut with Alyssa Monks,  John Dalton Art, May 20th, 2020

Belsito, Rochelle. Artistic Visions. American Art Collector, June 2019, pp. 62–67

Power, Kim, Uncanny Reality, Medium – The Blue Review, May 20, 2019

Lexington, Trek, 19 Artists You Need to Know in 2019, Medium, Feb 19, 2019

O’Hern, John. “Breaking Point.” American Art Collector, Dec. 2018, pp. 50–55

Peña, Karla Arlette, Alyssa Monks: Un Vistazo En La Mente y Obra De Una Artista Del Siglo XXI. Velv Magazine, November 13, 2018

Alyssa Monks. IthacaLit, Winter 2018

Alyssa Monks. Wall Street International, October 3, 2018

Gusev, Mike, Down to Earth – On a New Level. Medium – The Blue Review, July 26, 2018

Kerstetter, Andy, Bringing the Character to Life,  Idaho Mountain Express,  April 11, 2018

INTERVIEW Thomas, June, The Real Artist Behind ‘The Americans’ Fictional Painter Talks About Her Experience on the Show, Slate, April 6, 2018, podcast

Soloski, Alexis, The Plot is Fake, but the Painter is Real,  The New York Times, March 25, 2018, Arts and Leisure, p 13 & 16 

Soloski, Alexis, ‘The Americans’ goes Dark(er) with Help from a Painter,  The New York Times, March 23, 2018

Monks, Alyssa, An Orchestrated Compulsion. Artists on Art Magazine, February 2018, p 23-31

Fernandez, Milene, Discussion: ‘Traditional Versus Contemporary Perspectives in the Art World’. The Epoch Times, December 28, 2017

Menendez, Didi, The Top 100 Figurative Painters Working Right Now, BuzzFeed, September 2017

Alyssa Monks Feature,
Collective Hub, April, 2017, Issue 44, p. 100-101

INTERVIEW
Tucker, Dr. Linda, Podcast: The Beautiful AwfulChallenge Your Thinking, March 2017

Lemmon, Jackie, Alyssa Monks, Beautiful.Bizarre, March 2017, p. 66-77

INTERVIEW Smith, Hannah, Obscuring Atmospheres and Pushing the Complexities of Painting Landscapes to Find the Line Between Abstraction and Illusion Meet Alyssa Monks, Art Jobs, February 2017

INTERVIEW Molla, Joni, Grace and Harmony, Hoctok, December 22, 2016

Alyssa Monks: Resolution, Blouin Gallery Guide, April 2016, p. 8-9

Alyssa Monks: Resolution, American Art Collector, April 2016, p. 90-91

Bartlett, Bo, Resolution: Exhibition Catalog, Introduction, available for purchase at Forum Gallery, March 2016

Eby, Betsy, Resolution: Exhibition Catalog, Introduction, available for purchase at Forum Gallery, March 2016

30 Most Influential Women Artists Alive Today, Graphic Design Degree Hub, February 2016

Monks, Alyssa, Oil and Water: Hardcover Catalog, January, 2016

The Beautiful Awful,  TEDx Indiana University, November 13, 2015

Ajaka, Nadine, The Rustic Renewal of a Brooklyn Artist, The Atlantic, October 20, 2015 

Figueroa, Miguel, Seeing Your True Colors,  Vamp Magazine, October 15, 2015

INTERVIEW
Zhang, Jenny, Photorealistic Oil Paintings Capture Intimate Portraits of Human Vulnerability, My Modern Met, October 12, 2015

INTERVIEW Kamin­ska, Pau­lina, Interview with Alyssa Monks, Artophilia, October 6, 2015

PODCAST INTERVIEW Dalton, John, Creating the Space for Connection with Alyssa Monks,  John Dalton Art, September 13, 2015

INTERVIEW Alyssa Monks: The Illusion of Reality, SilverLake Voice, September 2, 2015

Alyssa Monks: Hyper-Realistic Painting, Issue No. 206, August 12, 2015

O’Conner, Rebecca and Will Govan, The Moth, Summer, 2015, Issue 21, p. 4 & 30

Lin, Christin, Alyssa Monks: The Photograph as a Painter’s Bully and Helper,  Epoch Times, June 20, 2015

INTERVIEW Turnery, Sam, Awesome Advice from Top Realism Artists,  Zippi, May 2015

INTERVIEW Green, Rob, Haunting and Intimate Paintings, Wallhop, April 2015

Hafesh, Louise B, Snap and Chat, Artist’s Magazine, front cover, feature, April 2015, p. 46-51

Robbins, Sarah, Connection: An Essay by Alyssa Monks, Dirty Laundry, March 2015

Webb, Shenyah, Artist Feature: Alyssa Monks, Nailed Magazine, February 2015

Connection – Alyssa Monks, Juxtapoz, January 2015

Menedez, Didi, The Artist’s Gaze, Poets and Artists, Sirona Fine Art Catalog for Exhibition, February, 2015, p.61-61

INTERVIEW Brass, Jesse, Connection: Alyssa Monks, Vimeo, July 2014

Cooke, Lacy, Alyssa Monks Connects To the World Through Painting, Thrivewire, January, 2015

Gentile, Brent, Alyssa Monks, Juxtapoz, 2014, p. 32-37

Menedez, Didi, Poets and Artists, front and back cover, October 2014, Issue 58

Astonishing photo-realistic portraits you won’t believe were painted by hand, CNN, October 2014

McCann, Margaret, The Figure: Painting, Drawing, and Sculpture, Skira Rizzoli, September 2014

Piowaty, Deanna Elaine, Women Under Glass: The Paintings of Alyssa Monks, interview, Combustus, September 2014

Luciano, Felicia, I soggetti (s)coperti di Alyssa Monks, Artwort , September 2014

Don’t These Look Like Photos? When You Learn The Truth, You Will Be SHOCKED, The San Francisco Globe, August 2014

INTERVIEW Jaklitsch, Trent, Alyssa Monks, Vimeo, July 2014
Jaklitsch, Trent, Tone,  Vimeo, July 2014

Alyssa Monks: Where Realism and Abstraction Meet,  Duo Magazine, July 2014

Keates, Nancy, No Nudes is Good Nudes, Wall Street Journal, February 2014

Through the Translucent Looking Glass, Dadada Magazine, March 2013

Upcoming Group Show: Contemporary Realism, American Art Collector, March 2013, p. 116-117

Paluch, Grzegorz, Alyssa Monks Paintings, ZIN / Magazine Kulturalny, January 2013, vol. 6, p. 116-129, Lublin, Poland

Reis, Patricia, Egoista, vol. 50, p. 102-108, December 2012

INTERVIEW Price, Marsha, Alyssa’s Brooklyn Artist Studio: Workspace Tour,  Apartment Therapy, January 2013

INTERVIEW Romero, Karla D., Alyssa Monks:  Humanize Magazine, Issue 13, p26-43

INTERVIEW Litmanen, Pirita., Interview with Alyssa Monks, Revs Magazine, October 2012

INTERVIEW Zappitell, Brenda, Inside The Artist’s Studio: pt I,  Professional Artist, September 2012, p.16

Malafronte, Allison, The New York Academy of Art:  Traditional Skills, American Artist, September 2012, p38

INTERVIEW
Menendez, Didi, Interview: Alyssa Monks,   Poets & Artists, online, July 2012, p. 10-19

Marinho, Rafaela, Artista Americana Alyssa Monks Cria Rostos Realistas Em Pinturas oleo, GQ Brazil, online, July 2012

Painter Renders Photographic Images, Yahoo News, online, July 2012

Photorealist Paintings by Alyssa Monks, Juxtapoz, online, June 2012

Maidman, Daniel, Rock and Roll Painters, Huff Post Arts: The Blog, online, March 2012

INTERVIEW
Lee-Tulis, James, Alyssa Monks Interview: Picture Perfect?, Departures Magazine Online, December 2011

Ferrari, Linda, Lady in the Water, Progetto-9, December 2011

Alyssa Monks: Metafora Claritatii in Difuziune, Luxury Rich & Famous, November 2011

Charlotte Strick, Women by Women, The Paris Review, Winter 2011, Issue 199

Alyssa Monks, MISC Magazine, Fall 2011

INTERVIEW Karakoc, Ozan. Alyssa Monks, interview, Bak Magazine, September 2011, Issue 16, p. 301, online

Alyssa Monks, Apocrifa Magazine, June 2011, Issue 13, online

INTERVIEW The Blind Architect, Empty Kingdom Interview: Alyssa Monks, interview, Empty Kingdom, June 2011, online

In Erotica, The Work of Alyssa Monks,    Juxtapoz, online, May, 2011

Alyssa Monks, Mental Shoes, April 2011, online

INTERVIEW
Aylan, Buse, Objektiften Firlayan Firca Darbeleri, interview, Dinamik, Bogazici University, Turkey, January 2011

Telem, Ainat & Ben Arzi, Liron, Alyssa Monks, Home Design & Lifestyle, December 2010

INTERVIEW Between Realism and Abstraction: The Photorealistic Paintings of Alyssa Monks, interview, Culturazzi, November 2010, online

INTERVIEW Cuffe, Michael, Alyssa Monks: Contemporary Oil Artist Interview & Studio Visit, interview, Warholian.com, October 2010, online

Desiderio, Vincent Fixation: Exhibition Catalog, Introduction, available for purchase on Blurb.com or at David Klein Gallery, October 2010

Stanley, Caroline. Alyssa Monks’s Warped Wet Bodies, Flavorwire, May 2011, online

INTERVIEW Fenton, Laura. Exclusive: Alyssa Monks Talks about her Bathing Beauties, interview, Flavorwire, April 2011, online

Rose, Joshua, Alyssa Monks: Fixation, American Art Collector, October 2010, online

Colosi, Simone, Intimate Observations: Alyssa Monks, Aesthetics Now, October 2010, online

INTERVIEW Hall, Kim, Alyssa Monks: Abstract Realities, interview,  Art Calendar, October 2010

Fresh Figures & Abstraction, Exhibition Catalog, online, Summer 2010

Galperina, Marina, Animal, June 2010

Bargmann, Sophie, Interview with Alyssa Monks, Glamcult, June/July 2010

INTERVIEW John, Jason, Interview with Alyssa Monks, interview, TheBroadstreetStudio.com, May 2010

Past Contributor: Alyssa Monks, Poets and Artists, May 2010

Fischl, Eric, Watch What You Wish For, Oil & Water, Exhibition Catalog, available for purchase, April 2010

Stalios, Michael, Water Water Everywhere, Zink Magazine, April 2010

INTERVIEW Submerged,  American Art Collector, April 2010

Three to Watch: Artists Making Their Mark, Fine Art Connoisseur, April 2010

Carpenter, Courtney, Beyond the West, Southwest Art, April 2010

WOOF!MAGAZINE, April 2010

INTERVIEW The Layers of Alyssa Monks, interview, HAHA MAG, February 2010

DG Design Network
 , February 2010

Hernandez, Ricardo, A Glimpse into Alyssa Monks Paintings, Yatzer, January 2010

Empty Magazine, December 2009, online and in print

Traffic Magazine, November 2009 (feature), online and in print

INTERVIEW Li, David, Her Art Really Imitates Life, interview, The New York Post, online and print, September 2009

Photo-realistic Paintings by Alyssa Monks, Telegraph, online and in print, September, 2009

INTERVIEW Artist Creates Incredible Paintings that Look Like Photographs, interview, Daily Mail, online and in print, September, 2009

Stunning Art that Looks Like Photos, UK Metro, online and in print, September, 2009

Die Geechteten, Fotorealistische Porträts, Sueddeutche.de, online and in print, September, 2009

Menedez, Didi, Self Portraits, Oranges & Sardines, online and in print, summer, 2009

Perilli, Benedetta, La rete œscopre imperrealismo: ecco le immagini, La Republica.it, online, August, 2009

Ayers, Robert, Review, ARTnews, June, 2009

Menedez, Didi, Alyssa Monks, (interview), Oranges & Sardines, online and in print, summer, 2009

Hodges, Michael H., Photorealists Make Painting Come to Life, The Detroit News, online, March, 2009

Painter, Alysia Gray, Los Angeles Art Show: Pucker Up and Kiss It, NBC, LA Around Town, online, January, 2009

Between Realities, American Art Collector, online and in print, January, 2009, (cover)

Stare Tactics, Hideous Sunday, online, January 2009

Monks, Alyssa No Place Like Home, Harper’s Magazine, Nov 2008, p 31S

Tacy, Greg, Swimmin’ With Women (and painter Alyssa Monks) at Sarah Bain Gallery, OC Weekly, online, September 2008

Henn, Kyle, Artist Alyssa Monks Lectures on Painting, East Tennessean, online, December 2008 

Alyssa Monks: Liquid, Riviera Magazine, Sep 2008

Dangerous Women at DFN, ART CAL, Aug 2008

INTERVIEW Baldwin, Rosecrans, Come Hell by Alyssa Monks The Morning News, online, January 2008

INTERVIEW American Art Collector, interview, November, 2007 interview,

Parker, Charley, Alyssa Monks, Lines and Colors, online, March, 2007

American Art Collector
, May, 2006

Lasarow, Bill, Alyssa Monks, Art Scene

Alyssa Monks: The Texture of Light and Emotions, The Panache Experience, California, Vol. 17, issue 6.

 

Lectures, Workshops, and Courses

Sunbury Shores, St Andrew’s, NB, Canada, 2019 (workshop)
New York Academy of Art, NY, 2019 x2 (workshop)
Donna Downey Studio, Lincolnton, NC 2019 (workshop)
The Compass Atelier, Rockville, MD 2018 (workshop)
Clases de Pintura Artistica en La Condesa, Mexico City, 2018 (workshop and lecture)
Warehouse 521, Nashville, TN, 2018   (workshop and lecture)
Omega Institute, Rhinebeck, NY, 2018 (workshop and lecture)
Flemish Classical Atelier, Brugge, Belgium, 2018 (workshop)
NYAA, NY, 2018 (workshop)
Warehouse 521, Nashville, TN, 2018 (workshop and lecture)
Art Students League, NY, 2017 (workshop)
Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art, Wasusau, WI, 2017 (workshop)
La Galería Rojaj, Sevilla, Spain, 2017 (workshop)
La Farinera, Vic, Spain, 2017 (workshop/lecture)
New York Academy of Art, Palmerino, Florence, 2017 (CE workshop)
New York Academy of Art, NY, 2017 x2 (CE workshop)
The Bo Bartlett Center, Columbus, GA 2016 (workshop and lecture)
Townsend Atelier, Chatanooga, TN 2016 (workshop and lecture)
Artensity Workshops, Ann Arbor, MI, 2016 (workshop)
New York Academy of Art, NY, 2016 (workshop)
Community Arts Association, Allendale NJ, 2016 (lecture and workshop)
La Galería Rojaj, Sevilla, Spain, 2016 (workshop)
Rome Art Workshops, Rome, Italy, 2016 (workshop)
Eyes on the Stars, Feet on the Ground , TEDx Indiana,November 13, 2015, Bloomington, IN
The Compass Atelier, Rockville, MD 2015 (workshop)
Laramie County Community College, Cheyenne, WY 2015 (lecture and critiques)
University of Akron, Akron, OH, 2015 (lecture and critiques)
New York Academy of Art, NY, 2015 (MFA class, 1 semester)
New York Academy of Art, NY, 2015 x2 (CE workshop)
New York Academy of Art, NY, 2014 x2 (CE workshop)
University of Tampa, FL 2013 (undergrad workshop)
Capital Arts Network, Rockville, MD 2013 (workshop)
California State University Summer Arts program, CA 2013 (5 day workshop)
University of Louisville, KY, 2012 (undergrad workshop)
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA, 2011 (lecture and undergrad critiques)
University of Tampa, FL, 2011 (undergrad workshop)
Weekend with the Masters Intensive, American Artist, NY, 2011 (workshop)
Washington Art Association, CT, 2011 (workshop)
The Center for Contemporary Art, Bedminster, NJ, 2011 (workshop)
Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Performing Arts, Bethlehem, PA, 2011 (high school workshop)
New York Academy of Art, NY, 2011 (CE)
New York Academy of Art, NY, 2010 (CE)
Bowling Green University, Bowling Green OH, 2010 (undergrad workshop, lecture, critiques)
New York Academy of the Arts, NY, 2009 (CE)
Washington University, St. Louis, MO, 2009 (workshop, lecture)
Landscape painting course, Carrara, Italy, 2009 (2 weeks)
Bowling Green University, Bowling Green, OH, 2008  (workshop, lecture)
Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, 2008 (undergrad class, 3 semesters)
East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN, 2008 (workshop, lecture)
Lyme Academy, Old Lyme, CT, 2007 (undergrad class, 3 semesters)
Landscape painting course, Serre di Rapolano, Italy, 2007 (3 weeks)
University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, Fayetteville, AR, 2006 (workshop, lecture)
Fullerton College, Fullerton, CA, 2006  (residency, demonstration, lecture)