New Paintings by Marc Burckhardt

Austin, Texas painter Marc Burckhardt premieres thirteen “New Paintings,” at Gallery Shoal Creek on 11/11/11. Marc Burckhardt lives on both sides of the equivocal art fence balancing fine art with commercial illustration. “Does this really matter?”

“Not really, as the artist is always an artist, and great artists blur scholarly points of view with a painted fervor that reveals thought-provoking visuals.” Marc Burckhardt is one of those artists. Marc has earned gold medals from the Society of Illustrators (NY) for thought-provoking, high-quality and memorable pieces. His work is rich with tradition often revealing work that is influenced by Dutch and Flemish painters from the 16^th century on. (Above, Bridle, 30x22").

A great collaborator, Marc is a featured friend in 15 years worth of Murphy Design projects (Dialogue, Heaven and Hell), as well as curated exhibitions, (Green, Survey Select, Lucid Dreams, Art Basel week in Miami). Fortunately, I caught up with Marc Burckhardt to share a moment before his new exhibit:

mM : What are some of the themes in your most recent collection “New Paintings” opening Friday, November 11 at the Gallery Schoal Creek in Austin, Texas :

MARC : My work has increasingly focused on allegory as a means of storytelling, with images that combine classical symbolism with personal narratives.

mM : Many of your paintings work in collaboration with each other, smaller pieces making up the whole. Please share some of the narrative you have visually articulated in “The Three Fates,” “Garden” and “Constellation.”

MARC : The “momento mori” theme of "Three Fates" and "Garden" incorporates classical symbolism with more personal visual language. In these and other works (like "Constellation" and "Fable") I've begun playing with the idea of mixing both archetypes and physical space to create a dialogue, so the relationship between one painting and another takes on a material presence as well as distinct meaning. (Above, The Three Fates, Acrylic and Oil on Wood Panel, 6.75x7.6" each panel).

mM : Recently, you exhibited “Kindred” in the “Lucid Dreams” exhibition. Do you have inspirational points from past art history that work their ways into your contemporary interpretations? Please explain. (Above, Kindred, acrylic and oil on panel, 10.5x12.5").

MARC : Absolutely. My background was in Art History and my studio is filled with stacks of books covering the periods I find most inspiring, from Byzantine iconography to early Italian and Flemish works through the Dutch masters. Their symbols and characters are like hieroglyphics to us now--some still a part of our cultural language, and others a lost mystery. I find inspiration in both the visual forms and their meanings, filtering and reinterpreting them through my own personal experience.

mM : What’s next for Marc Burckhardt?

MARC : I try to keep one foot in front of the other, which helps me avoid feeling overwhelmed by the distance ahead! I'm already working on new pieces for upcoming shows and have some speaking engagements coming up, too, as well as a retrospective in February at the Pennsylvania College of Art & Design. And as always, I continue working on commissioned pieces for a variety of clients. There's always something to keep me busy, which suits my temperament. (Above, Garden, acrylic and oil on wood panel, 6x6" each painting).

Thank you Marc Burckhardt for taking time out before your gallery show, “New Paintings,” at Gallery Shoal Creek in Austin, Texas November 11—December 3, 2011.

Doug Tanoury’s Lucid Dreams Poetry

Doug Tanoury poetry will accompany the “Lucid Dreams” exhibition taking place at the Noel-Baza fine art gallery in San Diego July 8—August 9. Originally, I discovered Doug’s inspirational prose at “Scene 360,” an online film and arts magazine on March 14 of this year. The entry was fluid and Doug’s poetic verse was accompanied by the artistry of Kent Williams and James Jean, promoting closer exploration.

(Above: Marc Burckhardt, “Kindred,” 10.5x12.5,” acrylic & oil on wood panel.“We carry with us our experience, and read our dreams—and the images we encounter—through that filter).

Doug Tanoury will be creating a series of original poems for “Lucid Dreams” and made available through the end of the exhibition. Doug’s poetry is soulful and a continuation of his work established in Detroit during the seventh-grade.

A Dreamer’s Journey

I search for her in my dreams

Wearing the bowl shaped helmet of Hermes,

Covered in dark blue velvet,

With white feathered wings

Protruding from its sides.

For somewhere along a dreamer’s journey

We were separated and I lost her.

Frantically l look for her and

Fly on the night air, weightless

And light as a baroque concerto.

The mercurial and malleable nature of love

Confounds and confuses me, for it is

Like the phantasmal spirit of God,

It flickers in and out of existence,

Present one moment, absent another.

I stop searching for a moment

Befuddled under a dark lapis sky

That holds strange constellations,

And as I stand alone in an exotic

Dreamscape half-conscious

Of being here before with her,

An allusive memory that runs,

Escapes and scatters

Like beads of quicksilver

That slip through grasping fingers.

In the weird tautology that is

A dreamer’s agenda, I forget all purpose,

My sense of mission muddled, and

Thoughts of her are lost once more in

The sleepy eclecticism of a summer night.

Doug Tanoury

June 11, 2011