Francie Allen has returned to the Pacific Northwest, having spent most of her adult life sculpting and teaching in Puget Sound. Her first introduction to Bellingham, her new hometown, was teaching at Fairhaven College over 30 years ago.

She grew up in a 1769 colonial farmhouse overlooking a New England village. She was an activist in the civil rights movement of the 1960’s and early 70’s, participating in marches with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

Allen holds a BA in fine arts and art history from Smith College, as well as a BFA in sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design. After relocating to Seattle, she earned an MFA in sculpture at the University of Washington School of Art.

Francie has always enjoyed collaboration and - in addition to studio art - she has worked with dance troupes and theatre companies to design sets and installations for concerts. She has also worked with community organizations and local county governments on art projects to foster environmental awareness.

Allen has a thirty-year exhibition record, both nationally and internationally, as well as numerous regional solo shows of her sculpture. Her concrete and cast paper pieces have won national awards, with several “guardian figures” permanently installed outdoors in city and private art collections in Puget Sound.

In addition to her teaching and community work, Francie spent ten years operating a production studio, designing and marketing cast concrete garden sculptures. Her water bowls can be found in gardens all over the Pacific Northwest.

Francie moved to the Bay Area in 2003, where she was selected to be an artist-in-residence for the city of Palo Alto. While teaching 3-D design and sculpture at a local college, she began her current body of work in wire and paper. In October of 2009 she married and relocated to Bellingham, WA.