Marylyn English

Biography

I was born in the midwest to a creative family which included artists, architects and engineers. Following their lead, drawings in pencil and then paintings in oil were my first art pieces. I was exposed to the works of the Masters at a young age. The emotional layers of glazes by Turner and Monet have influenced my landscapes. Rauschenberg's multi-media commentaries on modern culture along with the meditative 'grafitti' of his friend Twombly inform my recent pieces. My studio is located in Los Angeles.

Artist Statement

Employing three separate metaphors, my recent work concerns the relationship of our fragile earth to our own cycles of life and mortality: The “Wetlands” series is an exploration of water in its various forms. I often use multiple perspectives to create an image within a reinvented space permeated by the erasure of a human presence. These landscapes are residues of experiences rather than actual locations.

 

The series “Terra” includes abstracted depictions of three-dimensional geological strata using earth’s elements such as minerals, powdered metals and rock, as well as plant matter, combined with acrylic mediums. These striated images suggest subsurface upheavals and the erosion of the earth’s surface just as experiences can etch creases upon a human profile.

 

In my most recent series, “River View”, the divisions within the canvases flow together with a sequence of cause and effect. They include observations of urban sprawl consuming the last vestiges of what once were rushing mountain streams. Graffiti echoes the primal desire of leaving evidence of our brief existence on earth. I challenge myself to express concern by depicting the beauty of the earth with gestures of its degradation.

Art Education

My first formal art class was at the age of 8. I studied fine art at the University of Kansas and have continued my education through college classes, professional workshops and seminars.

Awards

My work has appeared in publications by Oxford University Dramatic Society in England, Systime Publishing in Denmark, Los Angeles Pierce College, the S. Mark Taper Foundation Amphitheatre in Beverly Hills, CA, and TreePeople also of Beverly Hills. I have received Best in Show and Honorable Mention Awards from Women Painters West of Los Angeles.

Selected Exhibitions

          

        

• 2010 Orlando Gallery Los Angeles, VOCA Gallery Venice, CA, Red Brick Gallery Ventura, CA (Scheduled for October)
• 2009 James Gray Gallery, Bergamot Center, Santa Monica, CA Ryman Arts Exhibition, Beverly Hills, CA Affair of the Art, 20th Anniversary, Los Angeles., CA Arena One Gallery, Santa Monica, CA, Best of Show Encino Terrace Center, Encino, CA Viva Gallery, Sherman Oaks, CA
• 2008 Orlando Gallery, Tarzana, CA, Award
• 2007 Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Sales and Rental Gallery, L.A., CA ArtHouse Gallery, Santa Monica, CA, Gallery Representation
• 2006 Abbot Kinney Art Gallery, Venice, CA, Gallery Representation Arena One Gallery, Santa Monica, CA Artcore Brewery Annex, Los Angeles, CA Topanga Canyon Gallery Juried Open, Topanga, CA Arthouse Gallery, Santa Monica, CA, Gallery Representation Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Sales and Rental Gallery, L.A., CA
• 2005 Abbot Kinney Art Gallery, Venice, CA, Solo Exhibition Fine Artists Factory, Pasadena, CA, Award
• 2004 Tah Gallery, South Pasadena, CA