About
Los Angeles artist Marc Raphael is influenced by the New York abstract expressionism of the 1940s and 50s. After encountering Jackson Pollock’s work for the first time in the 90s, Raphael was enraptured by the scale, energy, color, and abstraction, awakening his creative spirit. Raphael's painting technique combines the movement of his body, the viscous flow of paint, the force of gravity, and the absorption of paint into the canvas in a mixture of controllable and uncontrollable factors.
The size of this large original artwork is 60 inches by 48 inches. Raphael created this painting with acrylic and latex paint on canvas. It is stretched, wired, and ready to hang. The artist signed this original artwork on the front as well as on the back. The sides are painted as a continuation of the front and it does not require framing. It can be installed vertically as well as horizontally. Free local Los Angeles area delivery. Affordable Continental U.S. and worldwide shipping are available. A certificate of authenticity issued by the art gallery is included.
Raphael was a K-12 classroom teacher while he began teaching himself how to create action paintings in 1991. In January 2020 he transitioned to painting full time. This helped him deepen his understanding of the properties and behaviors of acrylic and latex paints. He continues to explore the expression of unconscious thoughts translating into the freedom of imagination.
“As an action painter who paints in an abstract expressionist style, I am primarily interested in the process of making art. To begin a painting, I lay raw, unstretched canvas on the floor, and without a preconceived notion of how the finished painting will look, I intuitively apply the first marks of acrylic paint on the canvas. What I love about raw canvas is how watered-down acrylic paint stains the cotton fibers, providing a smoothly textured background. Working quickly, I scoot, lean, bend, and squat as I move around the canvas executing rapid-fire drips, splatters, and swirls. By consciously attending to formal elements, especially color, line, and texture, and allowing intuition to freely assert itself, the painting soon comes to life and presents a direction. I liken this balance of control and spontaneity to a conversation I am having with the painting. This balance between control and spontaneity also reminds me of improvisational jazz, and that is why I refer to my paintings as ‘jazz-like improvisations on canvas.’”
Marc Raphael's works are held in numerous private collections around the world.
