Mixed Media

Transfer Prints To Wax

3D and Relief Series

Monochromatic Work

Laser printing directly onto a releasable surface, my images are transferred/printed to the skin of the wax where they are seamed together in their entirety.

I use mono-chromaticity to suggest a subdued, sometimes anxious atmosphere that appears veiled, mysterious and uncategorized. At first glance there may seem to be an identifiable space with specific elements in a state of isolated flux. In effect, they are extracts from a distanced level of reality that runs counter to our own.

These works are about a concentration of quiet energy, existing in silence, slow in time with energy that moves from the outside in.

Drawings

These drawings relate to the mystical-magical world that my eyes cannot comprehend although my body can sense. The background for this work comes from a period in my life when I was around the age of 10. I dreamed the aftermath of a mythical and transcendental occurrence. It left my world in unidentified matter exposed to light and dark shafts where the unimaginable existed within shifting currents. I had become a traveler transitioning into a magical environment which involved compelling movement. Curious observation replaced fear. My unbound floating self now democratically shared the same characteristics of other particles around me. It was only within the past few years that I recognized this dream state within my images: a concentration of forces existing in an unfathomably peaceful yet activated silence. I have used mono-chromaticity to suggest a timeless atmosphere with elements that appear veiled, secret and uncategorized. Made on darkened silver leaf, the nature of this world embodies extracts from a distant level of otherworldly reality.

Graphite Drawings

Contact Information

1816 Frankford Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19125
tel: 215-901-7190
e-mail:
www.michellemarcuse.com
Please contact artist for purchases, commissions, etc.

Artist Statement

Around the age of 10, I dreamed the aftermath of a cataclysmic occurrence. It left my world in unidentified matter exposed to light and dark shafts within shifting gaseous currents. Curious observation replaced fear. My unbound floating self now democratically shared the same characteristics of other particles around me. It was only within the past two years that I recognized this dream within my images: a concentration of forces existing in peaceful silence. I use mono-chromaticity to suggest a timeless atmosphere with elements that appear veiled, secret and uncategorized. In effect, they are extracts from a distant level of reality.

As for my technique: starting with a wax base, I developed a means of laser printing onto wax paper in order to transfer/print images to the skin of the wax. More recently my scratched drawings on the printed surface have contributed descriptive detail. While I had spent some years working with encaustic and reached a level of proficiency that was satisfying, it was not until I pushed this process forward that I felt my work began to reflect a more dynamic quality.

Artist Bio

Michelle Marcuse was raised in South Africa during the apartheid era. At the age of 18, she moved to the Middle East for seven years. In 1984, she arrived in Philadelphia to finish a BFA in painting at Tyler School of Art. The diversity of culture, ethnicity, climate and politics that she experienced in her youth continue to influence her work. Currently a resident of Philadelphia, Michelle has shown her work regionally, nationally, and internationally.

Michelle teaches a series of workshops and classes in encaustic techniques.

Education

1985
Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, PA

1983
Michaelis School of Art, Cape Town, South Africa

1981
The Shenkar College of Fashion & Textile Technology, Tel Aviv, Israel

Awards and Honors

2012
Artist Residency, Vermont Studio Center Fellowship Award,
Johnson, VT

2010
Purchase Award, 21st national Drawing and Print Exhibition, Gormley Gallery, College of Notre Dame, Balto, MD

2009
Jurors Award, Works On Paper,Perkins Center for the Arts, Moorestown, NJ

2008
First Prize, Absolutely Abstract, The Philadelphia Sketch Club,
Philadelphia, PA

Woodmere Endowment Fund Memorial Prize, 68th Annual Juried Show, Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA

2005
The Greater Harrisburg Arts Council First Prize in painting, Harrisburg, PA

1999
Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Harrisburg, PA

1997
The Leeway Foundation, Honorable Mention in Fiber Arts, Philadelphia, PA

Residencies

2000
Illinois State University, Normal, IL

Lectures and Talks

2011
Artist Residency at the Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT

2008
The Perkins Center for The Arts, Collingswood, NJ

2007
Penn College of Technology, Williamsport, PA

2004
Kutztown University, Kutztown, PA

Professional Experience

Instructor, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA

Instructor, Moore College of Art, Philadelphia, PA

Instructor, Main Line Art Center, Philadelphia, PA

Instructor, Moore College of Art, Career symposium, Philadelphia, PA

Instructor, Howard Pyle Studios, Wilmington, DE

Instructor, Chester Springs Studios, Chester Springs, PA

Instructor, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS

Visiting Artist, Athenaeum Music and Arts Library, La Jolla, CA

Instructor, Plymouth State College, Plymouth, NH

Instructor, Irvine Valley College, Irvine, CA

Instructor, Illinois State University Visiting Artist Program, Normal, IL

Gallery 825, Los Angeles, CA

Art advisory committee, Art in City Hall program, Philadelphia, PA

Bibliography

2007
“Present Tense; David Foss and Michelle Marcuse at Siano Gallery”, The Inferno, Millville NJ, Fall 2007

Fabbri, Anne, “The joy of existence in Old City“, Broad Street Review, September 15, 2007

Farrell, Pamela, “Dave Foss & Michelle Marcuse at Gallery Siano“, Artblog, September 14, 2007

Romaniello, Vincent, “A Grand Finale“, Romanblog, August 24, 2007

Rice, Robin, “See ya, Siano“, The City Paper, August 21, 2007

2005
Sozanski, Edward, ‘Glories of Wax’, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, July 29, 2005

Slupe, Ellen, ‘Art of the State Shows Pennsylvania’s Best’, Art Matters, Philadelphia, PA, August issue, Pg. 11

‘Oil and Wax, Chapter & Verse’, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, May 15, 2005

2004
Williams Vance, Donna, ‘Hive’ at the Arts League, Philadelphia Daily News, Philadelphia, PA, August 13, 2004

Fallon, Roberta, ‘Mood Processor’, Philadelphia Weekly, Philadelphia, PA

University City Review, August 2004

Sablove, Ricki, ’360 Degrees of Unity’, Alternative Central, Harrisburg, PA

Gehman, Geoff, ‘Inner Circles’ exhibit stretches and burns, The Morning Call, Allentown, PA, February 12, 2004

Lewis, Zachary, ‘Art to bring you full circle’, The Patriot News, Harrisburg, PA, July 18, 2004

Baver, Kristin, ‘Modern art comes full circle’, The Keystone, Kutztown, PA

2002
Slupe, Ellen, ‘Art of the State in Harrisburg’, Art Matters, Philadelphia, PA, August, pg 15

Higgins, Edward, ‘Lifestyles, Freedom of expression’, Artphile, Philadelphia, PA

‘Abstract Art in City Hall: Exhibit’, Home News (Art Museum Area), Philadelphia, PA, April 11, 2002

Fallon, Roberta, ‘ART’, Philadelphia Weekly, Philadelphia, PA, April 10

Publications

2011
Rooney, E. Ashley, forward by Charles Yoder 100 Artists of the Mid-Atlantic, Schiffer Publication

2010
New American Paintings, Juried Exhibition in Print – 15 Year edition, The Open Studios Press

2008
New American Paintings, Mid-Atlantic, The Open Studios Press, Juried Exhibition in Print
Juror Jenelle Porterfrom: Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania

Collections

2010
College of Notre Dame of Maryland, Baltimore, MD

2006
Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Philadelphia, PA

2005
Coventry First, Fort Washington, PA

The State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, PA

R&F Handmade Paints Inc., Kingston, NY

1999
The Bangkok Collection, Cultural Fiber, United States Embassy, Bangkok, Thailand

Selected Exhibitions

Solo
2012
LGTripp Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

2009
As Seen On Site, Inliquid at the Bride, The Painted Bride Art Center, Philadelphia, PA

2007
Present Tense, Gallery Siano, Philadelphia, PA

2005
Hive and Hue, The Gallery at R&F, Kingston, NY

2004
Hive and Hue, University City Arts League, Philadelphia, PA

Group

2010
21st national Drawing and Print Exhibition, Gormley Gallery, College of Notre Dame, Balto, MD

Premiere Exhibition: Fourteen gallery artists from the Philadelphia region, LGTripp Gallery, Philadelphia ,PA

2009
Annual Works on Paper Show, Perkins Center for the Arts,
Moorestown, NJ

The Urban Show, Inliquid 10th Anniversary, Philadelphia, PA

the (dark) show, StrataSphere Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

2008
New American Paintings,The Open Studios Press, Juried Exhibition in Print, Mid-Atlantic Edition

Absolutely Abstract, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA

68th Annual Juried Exhibition, Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA
Juror Stephen Talasnik

Betsy Meyer Memorial Exhibition, The Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
Juror Sueyun Locks

Into Intuituition: Towards a Redefinition, The University Gallery at Salisbury, Salisbury, MD

2007
Pink at Perkins: The Contradictory Character of a Complex Color, Perkins Center for the Arts, NJ

Surface and Beyond: Artists working with the Textural Possibilities of Wax, Ruth Morpeth Gallery, Hopewell, NJ

Painters in Progress: The Process of Painting, Strata Sphere, Philadelphia, PA

2006
Third Annual Invitational Exhibition, Pfenninger Gallery, Lancaster, PA
Invitational

Oil + Wax, Chapter & Verse, Community Art Center, Beverly Roman Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ

Remix: Wax and the Intuitive Process, Williamsport College of Technology, Williamsport, PA

The Natural World Unveiled, The Art Gallery at the Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Wynnewood, PA

Wired Gallery, Bethlehem, PA

2005
Art in City Hall 1984 – 2005, Art in City Hall, Philadelphia, PA

Immense & Intimate, The Phoenixville Art Center, Phoenixville, PA

Art of the State, The State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, PA

Oil + Wax, Chapter & Verse, Community Art Center, Wallingford, PA

Oil + Wax, Chapter & Verse, Siano Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

2004
9 artists, The Cheltenham Center for the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Invitational

Inner Circles, The Sharadin Art Gallery, Kutztown, PA and The Susquehanna Art Museum,
Harrisburg, PA
Traveling exhibition

2003
Surface, Matter & Artifice: Contemporary Works by Encaustic Artists, Dutchess Community College, Poughkeepsie, NY

The Future in Wax, Whitaker Center , Harrisburg, PA

Whole Ball of Wax, WomanMade Gallery, Chicago, IL

In Depth, The Main Line Art Center, Philadelphia PA

2002
Art of the State, Susquehanna Art Museum, Harrisburg, PA

Bio-Tech, InLiquid at DaVinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
Juried Exhibition

Non-Objective Art, Art in City Hall, Philadelphia, PA

2001
Snyderman Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

Undercurrent: Manipulation of Form, The Gayle Willson Gallery, Southampton, NY

Images in Wax: Contemporary Encaustic, The Karl Drerup Art Gallery, Plymouth, NH

Abstract, The Wallingford Art Center, Media, PA

2000
Organic, InLiquid at the The Painted Bride Art Center, Philadelphia, PA

1998
The 2nd Taegu International Textile Design Competition, Taegu, Korea

The Leeway Foundation Awards for Women in the Arts, The Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA

1997
African Presence – Visual Activism in Philadelphia, African American Museum, Philadelphia, PA

1 Screen, 2 Souls, 4 Hands, Art in City Hall, Philadelphia, PA

Committees

Art advisory committee for the Art in City Hall program, Philadelphia, PA