artsy forager

Tag: Marsha Boston

  • November Featured Artist. Marsha Boston.

    November Featured Artist. Marsha Boston.

    November might just be my favorite month.. shhh, don’t tell October!  So it’s only fitting to give you one of my favorite artists as the Featured Artist for the month of November!  California artist Marsha Boston is a painter after my own heart, exploring the wonders of plant life and how we might live in harmony with our botanical neighbors.

    Marsha Boston | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #contemporaryart Marsha Boston | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #contemporaryart Marsha Boston | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #contemporaryart Marsha Boston | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #contemporaryart Marsha Boston | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #contemporaryart

     

    A while back, Mr. F and I listened to a fascinating BBC story on the concept of “rewilding“.  Listening to these experts talk about the positive changes that occur when once developed land is allowed to return to its wild state definitely led to some interesting conversation and thoughts about how we impact our environment now and how we might in the future.  Mr. F observed what an incredible amount of hubris it takes on the part of man to think he can do better than nature. Marsha’s work is often focused on how we define our relationship to nature.  Are we here to serve or be served?

    To see more of Marsha Boston‘s work, please visit her website.  Her beautiful paintings will grace the Artsy Forager Facebook cover and I’ll be sharing more of Marsha’s work on other Artsy Forager social media all month long.  Make sure you’re following along!

    All images are via the artist’s website.

  • Delicate Awakenings: Marsha Boston

    Delicate Awakenings: Marsha Boston

    Normally, I love thick paintings.  Canvases piled high with mounds of paint and lots of gooey and delicious texture.  But there is a fluidity in abstract watercolors that I find just as appealing.  Watercolorist Marsha Boston imbues her work with such a lovely sense of light and tranquil color, they feel like looking at the world from under a blanket of warm water as the sun shines above.

    Saucer Magnolia, watercolor and ink

    Her botanical work focuses on our relationship with nature, our power over it in areas such as genetic engineering and nano-agriculture.  How easy it seems to be for man to take for granted and ultimately destroy the delicate balance that is inherent in the natural world, all for our own purposes.

    Leaf Mutants in Pea, acrylic on canvas

    Her Remembering Water series stemmed from the disastrous Deepwater Horizon oil spill, spawning an interest in aqueous plants and their usefulness and value in our ecosystem.  When oil spills occur, much is made of the impact on animal life, but the harm to plants and microorganisms that sustain them is rarely highlighted.

    Widgeon Grass, Remembering Water series, acylic on canvas
    Oculina, Remembering Water series, watercolor on Fabriano

    I love art for art’s sake and pretty pictures as much as the next girl.  But do you know what I love even more?  Beautiful artwork that tells an important story.  And that’s what Marsha Boston’s work does.  It is telling us the story of the destruction and misuse of the very resources that are here to not only sustain us but give us pleasure.  It would be a sad day if there were no more wildflowers to inspire artists like Boston to capture their beauty.

    Mountain Cranberry, watercolor and ink

    To see more of Marsha Boston’s work, please visit her website and Facebook page.

    Featured image is Indian Fig, watercolor and ink by Marsha Boston.  All images are courtesy of the artist’s website.