On the Cover | Dec. 30, 2021
learn about this issue‘s cover art
illustrated by Mary Solberg |
Volume One finds its cover art in a number of ways, from local art shows to random emails to knowing someone who knows someone who knows a great artist. The art always originates from a current or former Chippewa Valley resident. If you'd like to submit cover art, send us a message.“Sarah Icon” by Mary Solberg
Mary Solberg’s bold, iconic, contemporary work is influenced by religious imagery, the masters and circus sideshow banners. Employing her exclusive process, Mary creates colossal paintings she refers to as “Everyday Icons.”
“Sarah Icon,” (2021) 60” x 48” Mixed Media Painting (acrylic, oil, plaster, gold leaf) • Solberg’s series of “Everyday Icons” are paintings of people or animals she wishes to venerate on a personal level. No less an Icon for their familiarity, her mixed media works celebrate the sacred in all of us. The painting “Sarah Icon” is a portrait of her friend Sarah B. Kamsin, a published author, (Vita, Babel, Cauliflower: 39 Poems about Metropolis and Earth), a poet, model, and human rights advocate. Beyond her surface beauty is a grace and depth that defies her age. In general, Solberg’s Icon portraits straddle the zone between reality and otherworldly. Focusing on a single character she captures fleeting moments of triumph, transition, struggle and enlightenment. Her signature technique produces a highly textured masterful portrait with surprising depth and luminescence.
Solberg’s series of “Everyday Icons” is on display through Jan. 9, 2022, in the James W. Hansen Gallery at the Pablo Center at the Confluence. Click here for details and to see an online slideshow of the artwork.
