Inspiration in Isolation
Works from Canceled and Postponed Exhibitions + Works made in Quarantine
November 4 – December 19, 2020
Biography
[Indianapolis, IN ::: b. 1978 - Fort Wayne, IN]
MARNA SHOPOFF is an Indianapolis-based visual artist with an emphasis on abstract painting and intuitive drawing. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and Master of Fine Arts degree from Herron School of Art and Design, Indianapolis, IN, where she has taught in the Foundations and Drawing Programs. Interested in the concepts of design and spatial relationships, her work explores the idea of perception, place identity and visual memory.
Shopoff has led panel discussions on abstract learning and haptic drawing at the Foundations in Art Theory and Education Conference (US) and the International Drawing and Cognition Symposium (UK). She is the recipient of various honors and awards, including The Billboard Creative (CA), The Individual Artist Award (Indiana Arts Commission), and The Stutz Resident Artist Award (IN). She has taken part in artist residencies at locations across the US and Europe including the Vermont Studio Center (VT); Teton Artlab (WY); Taliesin, The Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture (WI); The International School of Painting, Drawing and Sculpture (Italy), and the Leveld Art Centre (Norway).
Her work has been published in print circulations including ArtMaze Mag, Create! Magazine, Studio Visit Magazine, Manifest and Blue Canvas. Her exhibition portfolio spans by both nationally and internationally (solo, group and collaborative), and she has participated in art fairs including PULSE New York (NY), the Miami Project (FL) and VOLTA12 Basel (Switzerland).
Artist Statement
What happens when we set aside the need to represent what we see and instead respond with how we feel? To me, life is fragmented and layered, a mosaic of experiences interwoven with reflection and intuition: the places we visit, the homes we live in, the countries we explore – each overlapping and influencing one another.
Blending contemporary and classical approaches to painting and composition, I examine how human experience, place and personal memory affect ones perception of self. I am interested in the interpretation of and the interactions with the spaces that surround me. What memories or feelings do these places spark and what sort of energy do they project? As an artist, I investigate whether someone can access and experience a new view of the world through my work and how I can create a new space using my art. My work explores whether, through art, we can share our individual perceptions.
Using a vibrant display of geometric abstract paintings, I explore the concept of spatial identity, translating how place and experience uniquely intertwine. I use abstraction as a way to move through and define the 2-dimensional picture plane, and color to express a certain idea or mood. Perspective, saturation and transparency, together with techniques of glazing and layering, create an illusion of depth and space, while visually conveying the fusion of memories and experiences.
Curriculum Vitae
EDUCATION
2014 MFA Painting & Drawing - Herron School of Art & Design, Indianapolis, IN
2012 BFA Painting/Art History - Herron School of Art & Design, Indianapolis, IN
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
MDRG Corporate Collection, New Orleans, LA
Private Collection of Ralph and Susan Brennan, New Orleans, LA
Brown Legacy Group, Indianapolis, IN
Fishman, Haygood Collection, Baton Rouge, LA
First Financial Bank, Indianapolis, IN
Indiana University-‐Purdue University (IUPUI) Campus Center, 2nd Floor
IUPUI, Graduate Center for Teaching and Learning
IUPUI, Office of Administration
SELECTED ARTIST RESIDENCIES
2016 Leveld Art Centre, Leveld Norway
Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT
2015 Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT
2015 Teton ArtLab, Jackson, WY
2014-15 Stutz Artist Residency, Indianapolis, IN
2014 Taliesin East, Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture, Artist in Residence,
Spring Green, Wisconsin
2013 International School of Painting, Drawing, & Sculpture, Umbria, Italy
2011 Ox-‐Bow, Saugatuck, MI
SELECTED GRANTS/AWARDS/FELLOWSHIPS
2019 The Billboard Creative 2019 Award(ee)
2016-17 Indiana Arts Commission, Individual Artist Grant Recipient
Merit Fellowship, Vermont Studio Center, February Visual Artist Residency
2015 High Art Billboard Project, The Arts Council of Indianapolis, 2015-2016 Award Recipient
2014-15 Artist‐in‐Residence Award, Stutz Artist Association, Indianapolis, IN
2015 Artist‐in‐Residence Award, Teton ArtLab, Jackson, WY
2014 Artist in Residence, Taliesin Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture,
Spring Green, WI
2009-14 Paul Zimmerman Memorial Endowment Scholarship
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2020 Chroma, Jonathan Ferrara Gallery, New Orleans, LA
2018 Première Couche, Jonathan Ferrara Gallery, New Orleans, LA
Grey Area, The Harrison Center for The Arts, Indianapolis, IN
2017 Color Correction, Jonathan Ferrara Gallery, New Orleans, LA
2016 Shifting Perspectives, Gallery 924, Indianapolis, IN
Wherever and Ever, The Rose Gallery, Jackson, WY
2015 untitled solo exhibition, Frost Todd Brown, 19th Floor, Indianapolis, IN
2015 Usual Places, Unusual Spaces, Jonathan Ferrara Gallery, New Orleans, LA
2014 Searching the Imaginary, Harrison Center for The Arts! Gallery No. 2, Indianapolis, IN
Gray Area, WellConnect, Columbus, IN
2012 Structured Essence, wUG LAKU’s STUDIO & GARAGE, Indianapolis, IN
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2020 Join Hands Collection, Virtual Exhibition, Pamela Walsh Gallery, Palo Alto CA
2019 California Open, TAG Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
