Alan
Soffer
Alan Soffer began sculpting in 1973 and had transitioned to painting by 1985, through a magical program at Bennington College. Teaching abstract painting workshops and eventual curatorial engagements ensued around 2000. Encaustics allowed him to marry a sculptural component to his painterly approach while studying at Ringling School in 1998. The hot, pigmented wax’s inherent translucency perfectly supports his vocabulary for expressing space from the microscopic to the galactic. Whatever the direction, the work is always influenced by Joseph Campbell, the noted mythologist, who Soffer considers his mentor.

Exhibitions have traveled throughout the US, Argentina, Cuba, Kurdistan, and France. Significant exhibitions have been at Musee du Chateau, Montbeliard, France; Gallery Sakiko-NY, Haydon Art Center, NE, Woodmere Museum, Philadelphia; Widener University, PA; State College-PA; Art Museum of the Americas-DC; Delaware Center for Contemporary Art; National Museum of American Jewish History, Philadelphia; Hoyt Institute, Pa; Sande Webster Gallery, Philadelphia; Penna. Academy of Fine Arts, Parallels Gallery, Philadelphia; State Museum of Penna, Harrisburg,PA.; Atlantic City AC; Robert Roman Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ; RosenfeldGallery,Phila,PA,
.
VICTORIA DONOHUE / PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER [2003, Widener University] had this to say:

“Soffer is a serious artist with a truly poetic gift for making his paintings coalesce into visions of quite remarkable beauty. He is a colorist and very versatile in this; he uses color exuberantly and paints seemingly with abandon, yet his results are nonetheless strongly rhythmic. Such paintings project an engaging physicality, even though they rely on swift effects to declare their presence.”

JURIED & INVITATIONAL SHOWS YEAR
WINTER SALON Gallery Sakiko-NY New York NY 2008
60 by 60 Duke Gallery Wallingford PA
RANDOM RUSTED ROUNDS Owl 57 Gallery Woodmere NY
SMALL WORKS Rosenfeld Gallery Philadelphia PA 2007
WAXING PHILOSOPHIC-5 person Wired Gallery Bethlehem PA
TOUCHING THE VOID-5 person Atlantic City Art Center Atlantic City NJ
GROUP Zenith Gallery Washington DC
GROUP Handsel Gallery Santa Fe NM
SOMETHING SPECIAL Gallery Bellaria Bryn Mawr PA
WORKS ON PAPER Main Line Art Center Bryn Mawr PA
ART x 12+ Widener University Chester PA
IN PERSON CAC Gallery Wallingford PA 2006
ABSTRACTION-4 PERSON Creation Art Gallery Juno Beach FL
OIL + WAX Robert Roman Gallery Scottsdale AZ
HOT WAX and COOL ARTISTS Haydon Art Center Lincoln NE
GROUP Owl 57 Woodmere NY
CANVASSING THE COAST BMS Gallery Princeton NJ 2005
OIL + WAX Siano Gallery Philadelphia PA
SMALL WORKS Rosenfeld Gallery Philadelphia PA
OIL + WAX River Tree Arts Kennebunk MA
INAUGARAL Creation Art Gallery Juno Beach Fl
IN PERSON CAC Gallery Wallingford PA
OIL + WAX N. Cal. Arts League Novato CA
THE GESTURE-Movement & Color Robert Roman Gallery Scottsdale AZ 2004
SUMMER SHOW Garrubbo Bazan Gallery West Chester PA
GALLERY ARTISTS Artjaz Gallery Philadelphia PA
TOXIC LANDSCAPES LBI Foundation Loveladies NJ
ABSTRACT EXHIBITION CCAA West Chester PA
IN PERSON* CAC Wallingford PA
GROUP SHOW Posh Gallery Media, PA 2003
SMALL WORKS CAC Wallingford PA
SNAPSHOT Aldrich Museum Ridgefield CONN 2002
REFLECT & RESPOND Krasdale NYC NY
PAISAGES TOXICOS Jose Marti Library Havana CUBA
JULY-AUG SHOW Parellels Gallery Phila PA
JURIED SHOW PAFA Phila PA
WORKS ON PAPER Sketch Club Phila PA
62ND ANNUAL EXHIBITION Woodmere Museum. Chestnut Hill PA
REFLECT & RESPOND Burlington College Mount Holly NJ
FACULTY SHOW CAC Wallingford PA
ARTIE PARTIE DCCA Wilmington DE 2001
ART OF THE STATE State Museum . Harrisburgh PA
TOXIC LANDSCAPES Chatam College Pittsburgh PA
ACTS OF KINDNESS Drexel University Phila PA
SNAPSHOT Arcadia College Jenkintown PA
URBAN BLIGHT Open Space Gallery Allentown PA 2000
CENTERFOLD Lesle Powell Gallery Lawtron OKLA
ELEPHANT ART DaVinci Art Alliance Phila PA
SNAPSHOT Institrute Of Contemporary Art Baltimore MD
GRITTY CITY Borowsky Gallery Phila PA 1999
NEW AMERICAN PAINTINGS Open Studios Press Wellesley MA
IMAGE ’98 * Hub Galleries State College PA 1998
SUMMER EXHIBITION Penna Acad. of Fine Arts Phila PA 1997
FIN de SIECLE Del. Ctr Contemporary Art Wilmington DE
“ Delaware StateUniv Dover DE
DOWNTOWN INSTALLATIONS Berkshire CAC North Adams MA
TINY WORKS Project Gallery Wichata KS
LARGE DIMENSION Art Resources St. Paul MN
PRINTWORK ’96 Barrett House Poughkeepsie NY 1996
SUPER VISIONS CCAA West Chester PA 1995
MULTI-MEDIA EXHIBITION York College York PA
ACROSS BORDERS/SIN FRONTERAS Art Museum Of Americas Washington DC 1994
RIENKS MEMORIAL: COMPETITION Gallery West Alexandria VA
NATIONAL PRINT EXHIBITION Harper College Palatine IL
SELF PORTRAITS Del. Ctr. Cont. Arts Wilmington DE
ARGENTINA INVITATIONAL Museo Estudios Historicos Odontalgia BUENOS AIRES
A PRIVATE SCREENING Ergane Gallery New York NY
OPEN JURIED SHOW Abington Art Center Jenkintown PA 1992
ART AT THE ARMORY 33RD St Armory Phila PA
AMERICAN, EUROPEAN/FOLK ART City Hall Phila PA 1989
ARTWEST Art Center Jackson Hole WY 1988
NATIONAL PAPER/CLAY Memphis State Univ.. Memphis TN
GROUP CLAY SHOW Sande Webster Gallery Phila PA
FOLK FESTIVAL U. Of Penna.. Phila PA 1981
JEWISH RITUAL ART Balch Institute Phila PA 1979





ONE PERSON EXHIBITIONS:
ALL MY LIFE’S A CIRCLE Rosenfeld Gallery Philadelphia PA 2007
CIRCLE OF LIFE Gallery Sakiko New York New York NY2007
ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONS Robert Roman Gallery Scottsdale AZ 2006
INFUSION Rosenfeld Gallery Philadelphia PA 2005
FUSION/ INFUSION Robert Roman Gallery Scottsdale AZ 2005
OSMOSIS Chester County Art Assoc West Chester PA 2005
ABSTRACT IMPRESSIONS Southern Exposure Gallery N. Palm Beach FL 2004
SAN MIGUEL SUITE Atlantic City Art Center Atlantic City NJ 2003
PROGRESSION Widener University Museum Chester PA 2003
CHROMA Parallels Gallery Philadelphia PA 2002
TOWARD THE SUBLIME Southern Exposure Gallery W. Palm Beach FL 2000
DECONSTRUCTIONS OF THE LIFE CYCLE Hoyt Institute New Castle PA 2000
ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONS Artjaz Gallery Philadelphia PA 2000
MAKING IT UP Brown Art Gallery Baltimore MD 1999
NEW WORK Artist’s House Philadelphia PA 1998
DECONSTRUCTIONS Fulton-Burt Gallery Sarasota FL 1997
CONCERNING CREATION Chester County Art Assoc . West Chester PA 1995
CURIOUS NARRATIVES The Borowsky Gallery Philadelphia PA 1994
BABYLON REVISITED Nexus Resource Room Philadelphia PA 1992
EVOKING ORIGINS Del. Ctr. Contemporary Art Wilmington DE 1992
SUMMER SELECTIONS Larsen Dulman Gallery New Hope PA 1989
ONE + ONE + ONE Community Art Center Wallingford PA 1988
ELEMENTAL THREADS Natl. Museum Amer. Jewish History Philadelphia PA 1985

TEACHING & WORKSHOPS :
ENCAUSTIC PAINTING:
Main Line Art Center, PA
CCAA West Chester, PA
CAC Wallingford, PA
LBI Foundation, NJ
Tempe Center, AZ
Soffer Studio, PA
ABSTRACT PAINTING:
Haverford College, Krinski program, PA
Painting for the 21st Century, Jamaica

CURATORIAL:
Oil + Wax
CAC, Wallingford, PA
Siano Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
River Tree Arts, Kennebunk, ME
Northern Cal. Arts, Novato, CA
Robert Roman Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ
Waxing Philosophic: Wired Gallery, Bethlehem, PA