Another fine art or mixed media collagist today, whose detailed realistic portraits with elements of paper collage are startlingly beautiful. I love when it's hard to tell what is collaged and painted, when collage is used for small or background details--Ann's work reminds me a bit of Teri Donovan's collaged wallpaper pieces. So stunning.

Ann Marshall
http://www.annmarshallart.com
NYC

Describe your work in 10 words or less.

My work combines traditional painting and drawing and paper collage.

What do you like to work with (magazines, photographs, vintage)? Be specific!

Whatever I can get my hands on. Lately I've been grabbing people's recycling if its something good. I like anything with lush pictorial spreads (W is good, the Economist not so much). I used to have a handful of subscriptions, but magazines were beginning to crowd out my tiny apartment, so I let them expire and rely mostly on found material these days. Sometimes friends will notify me when they're packing up a lot of magazines to throw away.

I also shop a the many great paper supply stores we have in the city: Kate's, Paper Presentation, and Paper Icon to name a few. And sometimes general art supply stores have some great stuff.

How long have you been creating collages and what made you start?

During a college summer drawing course taught by a great teacher named Larry Walker, we used matte medium and tissue paper for the backgrounds of one particular project. I completed the project and put aside the technique. The idea lay dormant for many years as I worked on other things. Later, when I was working on a book on a very short deadline, I needed to develop a faster way to complete the lush images I liked and I returned to collage. I found I liked the effect combined media produced. The first images were pretty rough, but my technique has thankfully improved over the years.

Are you solely an artist, or do you work in another profession?

Right now I am working solely as an artist.

Do you have any formal art training?

Yes, I received my BFA from School of Visual Arts in New York City.

Explain your favourite techniques.

To start, I'll pick a subject and do a few sketches to determine the composition on cheap paper. Once I'm happy with the composition, I'll do a lose sketch on the final canvas.

Then I decide on my color scheme. Sometimes I have a great paper I want to use, sometimes not. I've found here that less is more. Most painters use a limited palette (a small amount of colors which can be mixed amongst themselves) because the work holds together more. This holds true for the collage pieces as well and keeps the work from becoming overly busy.

When I start to paint or apply the pastel, I start with a loose version of the figure and with each pass gradually get tighter and tighter and my brushes/points get smaller and smaller. Think of the process like a camera coming into focus. I'll start to add the background collage and work back and forth between the painting and the collage. One of the best parts in working with collage is how one found cut-out can change the entire course of the picture, and so I try to remain open while I work. Of course, I can also loose control (this happens from time to time) and the piece becomes an overly complicated mess.

However, if all has gone well, towards the end, I'm pulling out details with small brushes or sharpened pastel sticks.

Sometimes the work is finished, but I'm not happy with it. In that case, I'll put it aside for a few days and come back to it. Usually by then I'll have an idea then how to fix it.

Describe your favourite piece ever created.

The next one I'm going to do. It's always the next one though...

What other artists do you admire?

A shortlist of artists I admire from other periods include: Rembrandt, Vermeer, Goya, Holbein, and Fra Angelico. I had the privilege of working at the Frick Collection when I was a student (I was only a ticket girl) and grew to love, and be inspired by, their great collection. However, I enjoy art in all its forms and can also appreciate great comic work, twisted Victorian craziness, and the sublimely weird paintings found at garage sales as well. I try to have fun with it.

However, my favorite thing I saw this year was Zhang Huan's giant Buddha at the Pace Gallery. The statue was created from ash, steel, and wood and the entire gallery was permeated by the soft smell of the ash. The work had a presence that was undeniable.

Thanks Ann!