"Starmaker" Painting

Marc Morrel by Geoffrey Witte It is a difficult task pinpointing the mystique and diversity found in the work of Marc Morrel. Initial impressions can be misleading. Through a long history and a creative mind that has explored a vast spectrum of concepts the illusive character of Morrel's work is somehow a combination of the earliest record of human activity; of breaking down and building up in nature's changing evolution, images evoked through mythological and metaphysical concepts, and a far reaching vision into the future. The almost magical concepts are ever present for Morrel, and it is these concepts that dictate the material and approach. It is in the later and current work that the mystery and magical qualities become so apparent. We see in the monolithic photographs a meditative journey of questioning through visual participation. In the paintings celebrating the ancient records of Native Americans, we experience once again an invitation into another world yet still our world. Further on in the work we are taken into the far-reaching galaxies of the unknown with which we are connected. Within these chapters of work we are exposed to the idea of, how can it be like that; or why is it like this? Where are we going? Where have we come from? Morrel goes beyond the idea of self-expression or art for the sake of it; his work is more an awakening through a visual meditation, almost an invitation into a spiritual world through visual experience. In the paintings, which came from close observations of the total eclipse of the sun, we see clearly that we are looking at a picture and beyond, perhaps the mirror of our sensations. In all the work of Morrel we see that the conceptual element is a very powerful one yet the paintings themselves remain works in their own right. The more you look the more you see, the more you question the greater the mystery. Biography 1937 Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA 1964 John Daniels gallery, NYC "Hard edge" group exhibition 1965 Van Bovenkamp gallery, NYC Erotic Art" group exhibition. World House gallery, NYC "Yesterday, today and tomorrow" group exhibition Van Bovenkamp gallery, NYC "Shaped canvas" group exhibition.