Ashley Lucas | Exhibits + Bio

Unrestricted by one particular medium, I like to convey my personality and intentions through illustrations, photographs, video and various mixed media projects.

My favorite subjects to photograph are animals, food, street life, architecture, and everyday objects. As a child, I despised antiquing on the weekends and the realization of a time long gone. As an adult, I have developed an intense appreciation for antiquated objects which tell the story of another time and relate everything about that era in history by just sitting on a shelf or collecting dust in a kitchen cupboard.

My illustrative works have been linked to the ‘naïve art movement’ and the style of ‘kawaii’, aka adorable cuteness. In today’s world, when artists are hired based on their knowledge and skill with high end computer programs, I try to retract as much as possible from this trend and offer only hand drawn illustrations and sketches which contain personality and meaning in every stroke. My characters have a unique life of their own because they are imperfect and whimsical. I feel ink on paper is almost magical in a way, and trumps the look of perfect gradations and symmetry from vector designs.

EDUCATION
BFA, Tisch School of the Arts, Undergraduate Film and Television Program
New York University, New York, NY
2004

AFFILIATIONS
Jersey City Etsy Team Member
Indie Debut Author 2011
SCBWI Member

PUBLICATIONS
Boo, Bat & Pumpkin Throw a Party
Published by Sunbury Press 2011
I Love NY Food
Published by Sunbury Press 2011
I Love Vegetarian Food
Published by Sunbury Press 2011

SELECTED PAST SHOWS
Rescue Me Benefit
L.I.T.M. Jersey City, NJ
November - December 2011

Cathedral Arts Festival 2011
Jersey City, NJ
Juried Art Event | 11.12.11

Digable Arts Festival
Hoboken, NJ
October 15+16, 2011

Juried Book Reading Appearance
Lana Santorelli Gallery, Hoboken, NJ
Sept 28 + Oct 25, 2011

Made in Jersey City ‘Group Show’
Jersey City, NJ
June 3, 2011 - August 31, 2011
*Curated by Emily Helck & Sponsored by Art House Productions

Bespeckled Fruits
February 2011 - March 2011
Prints by Ashley Lucas
Strawberry & Co. | Lancaster, PA

“The Up Side” Group Show
September 10 - November 30, 2010
Cosi Cafe, Newport, NJ
Opening Night September 10th, 6-8pm

“Boo Bat & Pumpkin Throw a Party” Book Opening & Signing
October 8 - November 5, 2010
Made with Love, Jersey City, NJ
Opening Night October 8th 6-9pm

REJECTED! The successful creativity of Jersey City artists
Jersey City Studio Tour - 373 Fourth Street
Jersey City, NJ
October 2 & 3, 2010

Ashley Lucas, {Solo Show}
Art House Productions
Jersey City, NJ
March 5 - May 28, 2010

"Sweet Stitchings" - Embroideries of Love, the Valentine’s Show
Made with Love
Jersey City, NJ
February 7th, 2010 - March 3, 2010

Williamsburg Group Show
S. 3rd Street, Brooklyn, NY
December 10, 2009
curated by: Amy Gingrich

Prost! Photos and Illustrations from Austria and Germany
Made with Love
Jersey City, NJ
November 4th - November 20th, 2009

Boo, Bat & Pumpkin Photo Illustrations
Made with Love
Jersey City, NJ
October 17th - November 4th, 2009

Tiny, Happy, Things
Snooze Hotel
Salzburg, Austria
Summer 2009
Original Lobby Installation

American Landscapes + Bare Produce
Snooze Hotel
Salzburg, Austria
Summer 2009
Breakfast Room + Hallway Installation

Tiny, Happy, Things
Made with Love
Jersey City, NJ
June 2009

“Prost! “ Recent Photographs of Austria & Germany
Art Walk One Woman Show
Strawberry & Co
Lancaster, PA
April + May 2009

Orchid Prints
Hard Grove Cafe
Jersey City, NJ
January 2009

Collision Machine Group Show
Brooklyn, NY
May 2008

Bar Sputnik Gallery Space Group Show
Brooklyn, NY
March 2007

Art for Giving Group Show
Isadore Gallery
Lancaster, PA
December 2007

All Things Great & Small, Art Walk One Woman Show
Strawberry & Co
Lancaster, PA
September + October 2006


AWARDS + SPECIAL MENTION
Cover Image - Lady Lucas Sculptures
Waterfront Weekly Publication
June 2011

www.artocracy.org
Featured artist June 2008

2008 Blue Moon® Art Project Contest Finalist
(Art shown @ The Columbus, OH Group Show August 7, 2008)

I take photos. I draw pictures. I make movies. I wear big earrings and like eating a good meal out. These facts about me haven’t changed much since the inception of this website, and are some of the most important facts about me. Born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania to two fabulous artists that met each other in art school, I had a childhood filled with endless creative projects ranging from made up board games, elaborate puppet shows, and my first novel ‘The Adventures of Mr. Pod’ completed when I was thirteen years old. Now just a dusty, returned and rejected manuscript, that little project was one of my favorite endeavors. As a young adult, I made my way to New York City to study film {and some interesting life lessons} at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. After college I held a variety of jobs in the fashion, marketing, and teaching industries that have shaped the person I am today. I currently work at my own company ‘Lady Lucas’ in the NY metro area while maintaining a steady exhibition schedule. My first children’s book, ‘Boo, Bat & Pumpkin Throw a Party’ has been picked up by a great indie publisher - Sunbury Press - and is now available on Amazon.Com as well as my two coloring books, ‘I Love NY Food’ and ‘I Love Vegetarian Food’.