The Art of Possibility
Maine artist Allen Bunker paints landscapes of emotion, shaped by balance, risk, and the search for what lies beyond.
Allen Bunker’s journey into art began not in a studio, but on a construction site. For decades, he worked as a licensed supervisor and business owner, carrying the weight of deadlines and decisions. To find a sense of balance, he picked up a set of watercolors while on vacation at Cape Cod in the 1980s. That first painting—created quietly, almost experimentally—opened a new path. By the time he and his wife, Priscilla, moved full-time to their Boothbay Harbor home in 2007, painting had become both an outlet and a vocation.
Together they opened a gallery in town, first to showcase the work of others. Then, when Allen hung one of his own paintings, it sold within hours. Soon his canvases outsold those of the forty artists represented there. What had begun as a release became his next entrepreneurial adventure.
“I try to paint the feeling I get from a particular scene.”
From Construction to Canvas
Allen describes his paintings as “Landscape Allusions”—works less concerned with topography than with the essence of a place. His art seeks not to document but to evoke: the quiet of fog rolling inland, the brilliance of a sky at dusk, the sense of return that draws people to Maine’s coastlines. “My goal is to bring the viewer back to that feeling,” he explains, “the emotion that lingers long after the view itself is gone.”
The rhythm of art and business taught him resilience. When the Boothbay gallery eventually closed, Allen viewed it as part of a larger process of discovery—an experience that deepened his understanding of both entrepreneurship and creativity.
Allen and Priscilla now live in West Newfield, where they recently renovated an old farmhouse and barn studio.
Experimentation and Voice
A self-taught painter, Allen relies on instinct and experiment. He paints quickly, seeking immediacy before the energy fades. Brushes, knives, even crumpled cellophane—any tool might serve if it brings texture or movement to the canvas.
“There’s a point where it becomes art. It’s not just a copy.”
For Allen, art begins when the scene before him dissolves into something more: an impression, a memory, a feeling. He resists replication, preferring to let intuition guide him toward the abstract edge where representation becomes emotion. Collectors often respond in surprising ways, choosing works he least expects.
When someone connects with a painting, Allen feels understood. “If someone buys my painting, they’re getting me,” he says.
Family, Risk, and Resilience
Allen’s life in construction taught him that creation—whether of a building or a painting—comes down to a thousand small decisions. Growing up surrounded by self-employed uncles and working alongside his father and brothers, he learned the value of independence, persistence, and trust in one’s own vision. These lessons carried into his art, where each brushstroke is its own decision, leading to something larger.
His wife, Priscilla, and his family have been steady companions on this path, encouraging his leap into art and sharing in the risks it required. “Entrepreneurs will always find a way,” Allen reflects. That resilience, rooted in family and shaped by faith, has given him the courage to pursue possibility.
A Philosophy of Balance
Painting began as a way to restore equilibrium, but over time it became Allen’s way of seeing the world. “You need enough challenge to get out of bed, but not so much that it weighs you down,” he says.
This pursuit of balance carries through his canvases. His skies stretch outward, his waters open into distance, his horizons invite the viewer to imagine what lies beyond. For Allen, art is less about documenting a scene than about offering a threshold—a glimpse of possibility.
“For me, it’s always been about the possibilities of what lies beyond, through, or in.”
Explore More
Discover Allen Bunker, a painter whose oil works transform Maine’s coasts into landscapes of emotion and possibility.
See Allen Bunker’s work at the Portland Art Gallery in Portland’s historic Old Port or explore his collection online.
Watch the Interview
Hear Allen reflect on his journey from construction to painting, his philosophy of balance, and the emotional landscapes that shape his art on Radio Maine with Dr. Lisa Belisle.