Day 222: Matthew Marshall

My recent work is an exploration in creating narratives with unknown conclusions. These four paintings represent two different approaches to subject matter, yet the physical approach to creating the image has remained relatively the same. The first two works are from a series of paintings created at the end of 2016 during a residency in New Delhi, India. The theme of the residency, hosted by Art for Change Foundation, was centralized on the word small. St. Jude and the Banana Thief, as well as I Kept on Walking were attempts at using dogs (which are very abundant in the city) as allegorical figures, representing the people I had encountered in that area. Allowing the word “small” to mean “overlooked,” I wanted to show a sense of dignity and calmness amongst the chaos that seeps out from the streets of New Delhi. The titles and imagery were pulled from early Christian iconography as well as images I had taken in the surrounding neighborhood.

The other two works also pull from iconographic references, but their subject matter remains more vague. Both images are based from dreams and late night journal entries that focus on a personal interest in faith and astronomy. In college, my big influences in painting were the Baroque and Abstract Expressionist movements. My tendency is to incorporate both of these influences onto the same canvas and sometimes allow them to contradict themselves, both in subject matter and technical application. I am hoping to continue with these personal works to create a narrative based on the merger of the “spiritual" and astrophysics. 

I find myself incredibly lucky to create art work and am surrounded by a loving, yet challenging community here in Phoenix. I am excited for what comes next.

- Matthew A. Marshall

www.matthewallenmarshall.com

St. Jude and the Banana Thief Oil on Canvas

I Kept on Walking Oil on Canvas

A Continued Ringing Oil on Canvas

Kopy- Keck Oil on Canvas