statement

Mark Palmer’s recent paintings are mostly oil and other forms of media such as charcoal and oil pastels on canvas. This work has evolved through both the addition and subtraction of paint. These thick, dense paintings are made up of layer upon layer of paint and other media that are applied, stripped, scraped, and scratched onto the canvas. Marks and lines are made to offer structure to the otherwise chaotic organic form(s) throughout the work.

Works on paper, mostly watercolor and ink, with some applications of other media, are primarily abstractions with strong elements of expressionism. His intimate paintings focus attention on their layers of color and sense of veiled activity.

Palmer fills these vibrant works with a mysterious atmosphere. He revels in the inventive contrasts he makes between darting ink lines and shifting organic forms. Working intuitively, Palmer weaves fantasy and an occasional touch of whimsy into his evocative compositions.