The Blue Mountain Gallery
in Chelsea is currently presenting a series
of works by Marsha Doran for an exhibition titled Fragmented Symbols. For this show, Doran unveils mixed media
abstract pieces consisting of materials such as dress patterns, tissue paper,
glue, acrylic paint, pencil, paper, marker, and ink.
Doran’s
subjects touch on religion and mythology by depicting various symbols like
crosses, stars, or flowers. She starts out by creating sketches of these
symbols which she dismantles, and then rearranges them so that they’re
presented in a new manner that still honors their underlying meaning.
For
instance, one piece titled Crosses
features several images of the iconic symbol of Catholicism arranged
haphazardly with red, gold, and white paint resembling fire to illustrate the
notion of crosses being burned. Snippets of text are blended in reading
messages such as “We all have our crosses to bear, we carry them heavily out of
love for our brothers in arms.”
Similarly,
Star of David includes images of the
iconic symbol of Judaism that overlap and covered primarily in white paint with
touches of blue and gold. In the center of the painting is a small, clearly
outlined navy blue box with a clear image of the star. In addition, there are
snippets of text embedded in the piece including a dictionary definition of the
Star of David.
 |
| Lotus by Marsha Doran |
Another
work titled Lotus depicts the
legendary plant which can be
found in many corners of the globe with in numerous forms, but the classic
Lotus flowers have pink and white leaves that are shaped like a bowl with a
yellow center. Those lotuses are native to Asia and serves as a symbol to Hindu
and Buddhist religions to represent reincarnation and divine beauty.
Marsha Doran studied at
Western Connecticut State University where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree with
honors in Studio art and Painting before earning her Master’s degree of Fine
Arts in Painting from Boston University. She has also studied at SUNY Purchase
in New York as well as at the Vermont Studio Center. She lives in Connecticut and has exhibited her work
throughout the New England and New York area. Many of
her paintings have been purchased into private collections, both nationally and
internationally.
At The Blue Mountain Gallery,
530 W. 25th St., through Aug. 18. The gallery is open Tuesdays through
Saturdays from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m.
