Karen Marcus, AFCA

Bouquet for the Millennium mixed-media collage

I love the tactile nature of collage. The ability to move the pieces of colour and mold them into shapes, the dramatic changes that come with each layer. It gives me great enjoyment to see someone looking at my work trying to figure out what has gone into the painting to create the texture. Things like sand, oriental papers and tissue, fabric, gauze, corrugated cardboard, acrylic mediums and gels, acrylic inks, acrylic, watercolour and crayons add dimension to the piece. My inspiration comes from so many areas. My husband and I have a long standing love affair with France and Italy. Annual trips provide an endless source of paintings in my mind. My love of flowers is a favorite subject for my photography and art and due to time constraints, I tend to plant my flowers on paper rather than in the ground. Living on the west coast also inspires me to paint the abstracts I see in nature. My Sea Fragments series has now spanned two continents taking in the Mediterranean. Working with collage and mixed-media is a freeing of the spirit for me and it has very much defined my style: vivid colours, bold images and strong textures. Karen Marcus is an avid artist, photographer and traveller. Through her photography and art she captures many of the moments of her travels. A line of photography and digital art is available at: Marcus Moments. Her photography is at:photographybymarcus More of Karen's art can be viewed on her web site: www.marcuslink.com/art

Summer Offering mixed-media collage

Sunflower Mosaic mixed-media collage	Sunlit Flowers mixed-media collage	Sunflowers mixed-media collage
	Sunbathers mixed-media collage
The Garland mixed-media collage	The Glads mixed-media collage	Walking in Claude's Footsteps mixed-media collage

SOLD/NFS

Exhibitions (Last Five Years)

2001

• FCA, Winter Show, juried
• FCA, Experimental & Mixed Media, juried
• FCA, granted AFCA Signature Status

2000

• FCA, Annual Winter, juried
• FCA, Experimental & Mixed Media, juried - Award of Excellence
• FCA, Spring Water media, juried
• FCA, Fall "Anything But Water media: juried - Pat Peacock cash award

1999

• FCA, Experimental & Mixed Media Exhibition, juried
• FCA, Student's Exhibition

1998

• FCA, Black, & White Theme Show, juried
• FCA, Annual Spring Watermedia, juried
• FCA, Student's Exhibition
• FCA, Annual Christmas Small Picture Show, juried

1997

• FCA, Annual Xmas Small Picture Show, juried
• FCA, Annual Winter Show, juried
• FCA Annual Open Spring Water media, juried
• Three artist show, New Westminster Library, New Westminster, BC
• Three artist show, Plaskett Gallery, Massey Theatre, New Westminster, BC

1996

• FCA/BCRF Fundraising Exhibition/Sale, juried
• FCA Annual Open Spring Watermedia Show, juried
• Images 1996 - Shadbolt Centre, Burnaby, BC - juried
• Three artist show, New Westminster Library Art Gallery
• Three artist show, Arts Centre & Gallery, Queens Park 

1995

• FCA United Nations Golden Anniversary Celebration,,juried
• FCA Annual Volunteer's & Daler Rowney Shows, juried 
• Images & Objects 95, New Westminster, BC, juried
• Little Art In The Lobby - Massey Theater, New Westminster. 
• "Seasons", Foundations for St. Mary's , Queens Park Care Centre and Fellburn Hospitals
• FCA Unframed Treasures of BCFCA Student's Exhibition

Awards

• Pat Peacock Cash Award, FCA Fall "Anything But Watermedia", juried (2000); The Garland
• Award of Excellence, FCA Experimental, juried (2000); Bouquet for the Millennium
•  Honourable Mention, FCA Annual Open Spring Watermedia, juried (1996); Summer Offering 
• Second Place, FCA United Nations Golden Anniversary Celebration, juried (1995) Sea Fragments III
• Honourable Mention, FCA Volunteer & Daler Rowney Shows, juried (1995); Spring Gathering
• Honourable Mention & Peoples' Choice Award,- Images '95, juried (1995);Summer Offering

Publications

• Somerset Studio, July/August 1999 
• Somerset Studio, March/April 1999; "Karen Marcus - Mini-portfolio" 
• St. Mary's Hospital Foundation & Queens Park-Fellburn Hospital Foundation, 1996 Calendar.
• Mixed-media collage, Spring Blossoms in Friendship Park. Selected to be in the 1996 fund-raising calendar.
• "Painting the Circles of Life, Profile of an Artist", Interest, (May/June 1995) Bi-monthly employee and retiree publication, international publication for the Royal Bank Financial Group.

Education

FCA Art Visions, "Experimental Painting", FCA012 (2000)
FCA Foundation Program, "Painting Mediums & Techniques", 210 (1997-98, 1995-96)
FCA Workshop, "From Chaos to Order", D. Baspaly, SFCA (1997)
"Acrylic Layering & Glazing", A. Zielinski, SFCA (1996)
"Collage Workshop", B. Roberts, AFCA, M. Hammond (1995)
FCA Workshop, "Watercolour/Acrylics on Paper", A. Bitelli, SFCA (1995)
FCA Foundation Program, "Drawing Course", 098, T. Huntley, AFCA (1994)
"Watercolour Workshop, Still Lifes", K. Holland, SFCA, Capilano College (1994)
Watercolour Workshop, J. Campbell, SFCA (1994)
Watercolour course, H. Kowallek, Langara College (1994)
Foundation Course Instructors who I have studied with: A. Wylie, SFCA; M. Svob, SFCA; S. Northcott, SFCA; D. Farrell, SFCA; D. Baspaly, SFCA; K. Holland, SFCA; R. McDiarmid, SFCA; T. Huntley, AFCA; J. Kamikura, SFCA