The perspective Alleman brings to the canvas has been celebrated by Astoria Fine Art since its beginning, managing partner Greg Fulton said.

“I have represented Joseph since the opening day of the gallery,” he said, “and we’re now starting our 17th year of working together.”

Fulton has hosted a solo exhibit for Alleman every other year since 2008, so this will be his eighth showcase at Astoria.

“He is one of the few artists I work with that paints in both watercolors and oils and is well-accomplished in both mediums,” Fulton said. “He uses a great mix of geometric forms and abstract shapes.”

Describing what he paints, Alleman said, “There is a beauty within the everyday and ordinary that only painting can reveal. I’m drawn to these subjects in hopes of making and sharing such discoveries.”

The Utah artist’s paintings of barns are perhaps his most identifiable. They elevate the role of a “landscape” painting to take on the qualities of portrait studies, where every characteristic and connection is brought forward with modesty, quietness and a unique sense of wholeness — which is why it’s no surprise that Alleman’s work is noted as visionary portrayals of the contemporary American West.

He takes his inspiration from his own Western roots in northern Utah, where rooflines and cloud-filled skylines occupy wide open spaces or concentrate thoroughly on a structure, as if it is its own geography and the main character of a story.

Watercolor Artist Magazine called that level of focus “quiet and brooding in tone,” saying that “his paintings capture the spartan silhouettes of the subjects ... scenes that recall our connection with the land and life, captured in moments of stillness.”

And with that, the painter captures the narrative of each of his scenes for viewers to form connections, in either the work’s innate beauty or with what they recognize in it.

Born in 1975 in San Francisco, Alleman grew up in Salt Lake City and began his study of painting under the Utah artist Harold Petersen at the age of 15 before going on to graduate with a Bachelor of Fine Art from Utah State University in 2000. Petersen, a prolific Western watercolor painter, is the founder of the Petersen Art Center.

Alleman’s work has been featured in numerous publications, including American Artist Watercolor, The Artists Magazine, Watercolor Magic and Southwest Art magazines.

His style of “isolated realism” has been compared to the work of Edward Hopper and Andrew Wyeth, who like Alleman were signature members of the revered American Watercolor Society.

Alleman has received national awards and recognition from various professional art organizations, including the American Watercolor Society, the Western Federation of Watercolor Societies and the Utah Watercolor Society.

The artist and his family now reside in Northern Utah’s Cache Valley, where Alleman says he finds a great deal of inspiration in the surrounding land, towns and people.

Alleman’s showcase will run from Monday through Aug. 14 and will feature 10 new paintings, both oils and watercolors.