However, I still make art for myself FIRST. I figure, if I love it, chances are there are others out there who will identify with it as well. The minute you try to guess what the public wants to consume, your authentic expression wanes.

As for the Catch 22 you mentioned, I can totally relate. Many people love my work at art shows. Does that mean they buy it? Not as often as I’d like

But, the more I create and the more I exhibit, means I’m building a cohesive body of work and a solid reputation, which means a lot to me. Then, when I DO sell art, I know I’ve connected with people on my own terms, and that feels great.

I appreciate your feedback and ideas as well. I will definitely continue to experiment with the concept and idea of “beauty”. I find that a lot of my work walks a fine line between sexy/disturbing, which I continually find to be a fascinating juxtaposition.

Thanks again for visiting the site and taking the time to share your thoughts!

~Nikolas Allen

That was when, on a rare trip to LA, I saw first-hand what was then a breathtakingly controversial image used on a huge billboard on the Sunset Strip.

Depicted was a woman in bondage, her body wrapped and criss-crossed with rope, her legs pulled apart and crossed with rope, her hands above her head, her clothing torn, and her flesh covered with what appeared to be cuts and bruises. The copy on the board read “I’m ‘Black and Blue’ by the Rolling Stones, and I love it!”

This was an advertisment for the Rolling Stones album “Black and Blue.” I recall a certain amount of shock on my part, though sadly, less to do with the subject matter than with the fact that this was a whole entire billboard on the Sunset Strip advertising a record by the Rolling Stones!

This was unheard-of, to me, anyway, as I was not then a resident of LA (that would come later) and had never witnessed anything of this sort in my life (as much of it as had by then transpired LOL) having grown up in a part of San Diego so rural, it might as well have been located in central Oklahoma.

But the image of an abuse victim, perhaps not quite so graphic as this, was not completely unheard-of; I remember seeing similar images on TV and in magazines. I was not yet seeing films, being a teen and having no theater in town. While such pictures were not seen in books, abuse and violence were often described as part of the plot in more than a few books. Comics, too, were rife with violence between couples.

The subject matter of your new work is indeed thought-provoking. The images are not so blatantly violent as those used in the 1970’s for the Rolling Stones ad as well as in other advertising media.

The addition of the stark, stencil-style font used to add the written copy to your digital images works well to create the jarring message of each work onto the viewer.

I would love to see a series of images in this style expanded. A sort of “time-lapse” series, using the image of the same woman in each, depicting the deterioration in physical beauty as well as in her own self-esteem that such abuse and its justification inflict over time.

Just a thought.

The whole idea of “She was asking for it” makes me shudder. Actually, that seems to be the underlying concept of all these pieces. Yikes!

I realize this is a hot-button topic, so it should be very interesting to hear the myriad opinions and feedback that this artwork will surely incite over the course of its existence.

May you continue to experience the positive, loving side of Yang consciousness.

~Nikolas Allen

Girls grow up subverting ourselves to protect ourselves from the male aggressor. Ask an average woman on the streets of a city or a college campus what she does or thinks about on a daily basis to keep herself safe. There will be a list often, keys in hand, look around first, look under the car, look in the car, park in a lighted area, dress conservatively, mace, walk with purpose…blah blah blah I could go on and on. Ask the same of a man. I’m pretty sure the answer will be much shorter. And this is in America, land of the free. Think about the woman in Africa of Iraq of India.

My bitter self says that the prey must protect itself from the predator, and that’s just the way it is. My hopeful understanding loving self, knows that Yang consciousness is still in it’s evolution towards loving kindness. I know because I’ve witnessed those men, and I am grateful.