Boise-based crafter, Allison Demarest, paints vibrant watercolors inspired by the hope found in everyday life and the people she’s met during gallivants about the world.

During a trip to Africa in 2007 the head of a school where Allison was volunteering said to her, “You can’t save the world, but you can make the sun shine around you.” Hearing those words transformed Allison’s overwhelming feelings about the state of the world into a great opportunity.

Upon returning home from Africa, Allison decided to start living the life she imagined- she hopped onto airplanes flying in every direction, listened to her internal compass, encouraged her creativity to blossom, and worked to make the sun shine around her. It was in deciding to follow her heart, that Allison’s crafting habit became a much deeper love for all things art.

Allison paints many of her watercolors on cardboard, an idea that began while living on a rural communal farm in upstate New York in 2008. Cardboard was abundant in packages sent from loved ones and as she learned to help heal the earth through farming, re-using a material that would otherwise end up in a landfill seemed obvious.

Cardboard art or ‘art with heart’ as this series has affectionately been called, often encompasses a hopeful or inspiring word, quote, or message along with Allison's trademark geometric shapes and bright colors that are created with very concentrated watercolor and pen & ink.

Allison’s art can be found at ‘Indie Made’ on 6th and Main in downtown Boise or through her website www.allisondemarest.com.