Marlene Struss

My intention is to extol the mystery and majesty of nature through a collaborative process with the paint itself: Without preconception, I contribute the wood panel, mix the colors, and introduce unusual materials and forces for the paint to interact with. The painting cooperates by becoming a distinct organic pattern or landscape formation that is always a surprise and something I could not have imagined. In subsequent layers I may wipe away still wet parts revealing the process. In this way the painting builds its own story, as in the nature of seasons or geologic stratification. The resulting images are "real" in the truest sense but not necessarily familiar. Keeping with this idea of partnering with nature, lately I have been experimenting with coloring-in a template of plant shadows as a final layer that serves to invite a viewer to look deeper into the painting. I describe these "painted manifestations" as biomorphic abstract and semi-abstract expressionism with an Asian influence. They are exciting and humbling to produce and hopefully beautiful and interesting for you.

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Lourdes of the Nonbeliever
8" x 8"

Golden Years
36" x 36"

Apex of Ambivalence
48" x 40"

Euphoria
40" x 30"

Migrants
30" x 40"