Mark Bowers

True North - Privilege, Surreal Landscape w/ Blue Sky, Scattered Clouds, & House

2019

"True North - Identity" is a worms-eye view of a brilliant blue sky with a maze of distinctive clouds. The surreal quality of the imagery makes the viewer question reality. Are the clouds actual clouds or made by some other means? Are those fluffy clouds behind the bare branches or mountains? The ellipsed edges confirm the scene as an inner vision rather than a window on the world. The painting itself is painted on a handmade wooden panel with beautifully finished edges so no frame is needed. Mark Bowers True North - Identity oil on panel 9h x 12w in 22.86h x 30.48w cm MJB014 TRUE NORTH PAINTINGS Unconscious systemic biases may guide our actions or direct us---similar to the human construct of “True North”, which holds to coordinate systems. The Earth’s “Magnetic North” moves over time according to polar shifts; flux and correction is enabled by polarity. In these paintings (Privilege, Orientation, Belief, Identity, Equity), I use compositional elements referencing nautical com- passes to suggest that society must navigate not within systems, but naturally through positive relationships and change. I hope that my art represents our present day - but also imparts a dreamful glimpse of hope and faith within. Explanation: A magnetic compass does not point toward the true North Pole of the Earth. Rather, it more closely points toward the North Magnetic Pole of the Earth. The North Magnetic Pole is currently located in northern Canada. It wanders in an elliptical path each day, and moves, on the average, more than forty meters northward each day. Evidence indicates that the North Magnetic Pole has wandered over much of the Earth's surface in the 4.5 billion years since the Earth formed. Mark Bowers- Artist Statement With the depiction of landscape playing such a central role in the history of North American art, it seemed to offer many of the critical possibilities I was looking for, and it felt more and more like something I have always known. Something I could easily apply, stage, and manipulate as a diary. My work consists of small-scale highly detailed landscape paintings. They are inspired by the comfort, trepidation, and beauty found in the mundane Chicago Suburbs. I combine nature, decorative house wares...

Mark Bowers Yes, But Does it Float oil on linen 21.75h x 14.75w in 55.24h x 37.47w cm MJB004 Mark Bowers- Artist Statement With the depiction of landscape playing such a central role in the history of North American art, it seemed to offer many of the critical possibilities I was looking for, and it felt more and more like something I have always known. Something I could easily apply, stage, and manipulate as a diary. My work consists of small-scale highly detailed landscape paintings. They are inspired by the comfort, trepidation, and beauty found in the mundane Chicago Suburbs. I combine nature, decorative house wares...

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