Mary Mark

Mary Mark

MARY MARK's exuberant relief prints appear in museum and private collections around the country. Her work is currently on view in the national juried exhibition Art at the X through January 11 at Xavier University. Here are five things that motivate her:

Visual obsession. My eye, my heart and my brain have been preoccupied for decades by the manipulation of the linoleum block. Being immersed in the relief printing process reveals a quality of line that always creates an "aha" experience for me in the final work of art.

Journey. Relief printmaking is a technical trek. I carve the block in multiple stages and print layers of colored ink, controlling each step to create an image with artistic integrity. The journey itself inspires me — at 10 colors and two months, I hate it, but at 19 colors and four months, I'm ecstatic.

Color. I am motivated by saturated color in all its configurations, brilliant or subtle, finessed or full of contrast. I prefer colors that are pure, not whited out or grayed down. I am inspired by the emotions communicated by color arrangements.

The Random. Early morning fog steaming off the Ohio River. Sunlight bursting through the leaves of a tree. Shadows stretching across an overgrown field. Discombobulated caf´ chairs. The random cracks in a sidewalk.

Communication. The mostly unarticulated psychic communications with fellow artists fuel me. We digest our world through unusual portals, like a musical arrangement, a well-written sentence, a choreographed movement, a high-quality art exhibition or extended conversations with artist friends.