A
R T I S T S T A T E M E N T
T h e A r t o f M a
r c e l l e L a C o u r
My
art is a portrayal of my sense of life and aesthetic, recombined
and distilled into new moments of beauty, witty fun and significance.
My perceptions as I travel across life work their way into the worlds
I create—I call them “Scapes”: Landscapes, Cityscapes,
“Life” ‘scapes, full of light-struck color and
an unusual combination of objects in unlikely places. Subtle messages
and pathways meander through them, inviting one to wander into,
or out of oneself.
Art in all its forms is the joy of my life. I believe its importance
in all our lives is too often unseen, un-acknowledged. That art
has great power has become more and more apparent to me: the power
to calm or to inspire, to destroy or to transcend. The power to
change a world, even, with the single stroke of an idea. Art is
more than a mirror reflecting our world; it is the soul that casts
its form.
The art I create is dependent upon a careful composition. Drawing
is key to my work. I often let it peek through the paint, its direct
quality can easily be lost under layers of oil, and I don’t
want to lose the fresh spontaneity of my original concept. But there
are those occasions when planning and forethought fly out the window—sometimes
the paint connects with an urgent idea, takes hold of my brush and
flings itself across the canvas before I have a chance to consider
the consequences. In the end I try to infuse all my work with radiance
and resonance in a layered, rich application of oil paint.
Currently I am working on a series of paintings that combine something
of the surreal and something playful, or simply beautiful. In these
paintings I portray my joy in the mystery and magic of wondrous
places and interesting combinations that hold unexpected and delightful
surprises. In each painting I strive for a transcendence generated
in the luminescence of color in light.
–
Marcelle La Cour
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Marcelle La
Cour is an artist currently based in California. Of French and Russian
heritage, she was born in Los Angeles in 1960. Growing up in a family
of artists, she does not remember a time when she did not draw or
paint. Her first recollection is at the early age of 9 months, when
lying on the living room carpet, the summer light ignited the threads
of the carpet into a glorious dance of flame and golden colors.
From that moment on she has been entranced with color in light.
Aiding her early desire to express herself, her mother, a trained
art teacher put colors into her hands before she could walk. As
she grew up, her French grandmother’s impressionistic paintings
had a big impact upon her. At age 15 she won first prize inher first
art competition, in the work, "The
Minuteman." This painting celebrates the Bicentennial of
America. As a winner, she traveled to Paris with her art teacher,
putting her time there to good use by attending the Louvre and Parisian
artistic communities, and in taking many photos that she has used
for further paintings.
At University
she realized she was not getting the training she needed, and went
to study under professional artists for some time. However she learned
most of her technique studying the Old Masters on her own. Her early
works include reproductions of the 17th Century French Masters,
and her own created mural compositions for hotels and restaurants,
including her design of the 25 foot ceiling mural in the lobby of
the hotel Château Elysée in Hollywood.
For many years,
her illustration capabilities and graphic and print designs funded
her career, while she concentrated on refining her technique. During
this time she married and had a son, and the duties of family life
took precedence in her life. She is now devoting all her time to
create her new series of expressive and unusual oil paintings.
“Something
has always been there within me, calling me to express the beauty
and possibilities we are capable of. I desire to make the familiar
unique, the ordinary much more than extraordinary, and over all,
to brush an illuminating light upon our vision in a way that inspires
and fulfills.” ––
Marcelle La Cour
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Solo
Exhibitions
2001: Modern Surrealism" - The Art Collection, Los Angeles,
CA (USA)
1998: "Versatility in Media" - Santa Barbara, CA (USA)
1996: "Art Expressions" - Hollywood, CA (USA)
Group Exhibitions
1997: Celebrity Center for the Arts - Hollywood, CA (USA)
1995: : The Art Gallery, Glendale, California
1991: Celebrity Center for the Arts - Hollywood, CA (USA)
1989: The Art Gallery - Los Angeles, CA (USA)
Collections
Air France
Le Chateau Elysée, Hollywood, CA
B. Gilham Snr., private collection
N.D. Knox, private collection
Joy & John Taylor, private collection
Lissa Redmond, private collection
Grants and Awards
1976
First Place, Air France Bicentennial competition, Los Angeles, CA
(USA)
Education
1979: B. A., California State University of Northridge
1983: Studied with Larry Gluck, founder of Mission Renaissance School
of Art
2001: Studied with master painter, Frank Covino
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