Like the great artists of the past who have been an inspiration to me, my
work is an attempt to capture truth. Truth can find form in that which is
beautiful, sometimes truth is painful, sometimes startling, but always, it is
powerful.
Like the great artists of the past who have been an inspiration to me, my
work is an attempt to capture truth. Truth can find form in that which is
beautiful, sometimes truth is painful, sometimes startling, but always, it is
powerful.
When you find truth and beauty in the same
place that is a wonderful thing. In my paintings, it is the nature of “the
feminine” that I am pursuing. “The feminine” is a quality that resides in
all of us, man or woman in varying degrees; and it is the mysterious nature of
“the feminine” that compels me to paint.
I strive to define “the feminine” in
paintings of women which, for me, symbolize pure beauty; on the other hand, the
subject of a male expressing his feminine side is perhaps the ultimate irony
(from a cultural standpoint) and I find this subject also compelling.
As an artist, the way that I create a
painting is just as important as my subject matter. My goal is to achieve a
harmony between the form of a painting (how it is painted), and the content of a
painting (the subject).
Sometimes I let the anxiety and the ecstasy
come through in the way something is painted. Other times I use a glazing
technique like that of the Old Masters of the Renaissance era. Multiple layers
of translucent paint may be applied to achieve glowing flesh tones.
Mark Catalina creates large-scale expressive
figure paintings at his studio in central Connecticut. Ideas about fashion,
references to commercial imagery and concern about gender construction in our
culture all play a role in his works.
His paintings have been exhibited in
galleries and museums throughout the east coast, including: Massachusetts
College of Art, Boston; The University of Connecticut, Storrs; The New Britain
Museum of American Art, new Britain, Connecticut; Club USA, Thierry Mugler room,
NYC; the Kingston Gallery, Boston; the CenterSpace and Atria Galleries,
Hartford, Connecticut. In addition, his works are in private collections
throughout the United States.
Mark’s art should be on display in some big art gallery. We
corresponded back in the days before the Internet took over, and I was honored
to publish his art back in the early 90’s.
I have lost track of so many of the artists
as time passes. Magazine publishing began its decline as the “Net” increased
in popularity…so many artists dropped out or lost interest, I suppose.
Hopefully Mark will find his Gallery, be pleased, and get back in contact with
me…