The Quiet After : Marc Ross
“….art is the privileged space of contemplation, and as such, a reprieve and sanctuary from the barbarism of the world…” art critic, Donald Kuspit
In the new work of Ohio-based artist Marc Ross, our project space becomes a reprieve and a place of resolve. It operates as a sanctuary shaped by the full spectrum of color and the expansive breath of luminosity. The room shifts under their presence. Color carries weight. Light carries intention.
Each work, composed of acrylic and colored pencil, begins in density. Ross builds the surface patiently, accumulating layer upon layer until the fields of color hold a palpable physicality. Through sanding, he moves into a second phase of the process. This gesture transforms compression into atmosphere. Light is drawn forward from within the surface itself, emerging as a kind of internal radiance.
With sustained looking, another structure reveals itself. Graphite and colored pencil marks surface as intricate systems of line. They read like encoded sequences, a chromatic language embedded in the strata of paint. What first registers as unified color unfolds into an intense chorus of linear movement. The surface contains both expanse and precision.
In their devotion to color, line, and material process, these works return painting to its most essential concerns. They feel alive and spiritually aware, grounded in the universal experience of light and perception.
