Greg Marquez

As a Colorado Native, I love both myth and reality of the American West. My work is rooted in the impressions of landscapes and wildlife—whether they are rendered with realism or abstraction—and thus imbued with the color and light so unique to this part of the world. My aesthetic considers the West as place of light and shifting perspectives while also highlighting natural, as opposed to romanticized, beauty: I like to let the subject speak for itself. To this end, I have painted wildlife portraits that elevate and personalize the subject, while studying them in a way that avoids the classic heroic trope so often depicted in Western Art. My work seeks a more realistic myth, one rooted in close examination and simple evocation. Most recently, along with my work in animal portraiture, my work with horizons excites me the most. In these works, abstracted landscape focus on the contrast of earth and sky—the horizon–the point we so often look to in the West. Like John Ford’s use of the horizon as a line of demarcation and contrast, these pieces revel in the colors of the Colorado Grasslands and invites meditations on so called “empty spaces.”   

Greg Marquez grew up in that mythical place called the American West and is a Colorado Native. Largely taught by the precious beauty of open spaces such as land and sky, Greg’s watercolors and acrylics are rooted in impressions of place–both landscapes and wildlife rendered with realism and abstraction—and thus imbued with the color and light so unique to the West. Greg has been awarded four corporate commissions and has most recently finished the first Nederland mural, titled “A Good, Great Place,” installed on the side of Nederland Pet and Feed in town. He has exhibited in juried shows and galleries across Colorado. Currently, his work can be seen at Crosscut Pizza & Taphouse and is for sale at Kaleidoscope Gallery in Nederland and is held in private collections along the Front Range. Greg is also a wood-worker and toymaker and owner of Moose Works Colorado, a regular at the Nederland Farmer’s Market. He lives outside of Rollinsville with the writer Karen Auvinen and their dog River and cat, Dottie.

More at Artquez.com and Mooseworkscolorado.com

______________Art Exhibit Information

Nederland Community Library