With a nod to often overlooked botanicals and an added touch of gold, Texas-based artist Marcy Palmer creates dreamlike, photo-based works.
The artist: Palmer grew up in Saratoga Springs, NY, and received a BS in studio art from Skidmore College. She also earned an MFA in photography & related media from The School of Visual Arts in NYC.
In addition to working in her home studio in Dallas, Palmer is a lecturer at The University of Texas/Dallas.
The art & materials: Photo-based artworks, often including non-traditional elements or media, such as gold or silver leaf and vellum.
What’s popular:
- “That Luscious Day,” 24k gold leaf, vellum, varnish, wax ($4,400 for 16 X 22 inch image).
- “Elegant Petals,” 24k gold leaf, vellum, varnish, wax ($850 for 7 X 9 inch image).
Other favorites: Her book, “You Are Eternity, You Are the Mirror” ($30, Yoffy Press). It is an exploration of beauty as an antidote for personal and political crisis.
Images in the book are made from plants and flowers, which are photographed, printed on vellum, and hand applied with 24k or 18k gold leaf, varnish, and wax to create the final images.
The project is inspired by Anna Atkins’s botanical studies as well as surrealist photographers.
Inspirations:
- The Surrealists (especially women surrealist photographers).
- Bauhaus photography and photomontage.
What’s new:
- Exhibition: “Shootapalooza /A Murmuration of Artists” at The Griffin Museum of Photography in Winchester, MA, Sept. 8-Oct. 2.
- “O, What a Night!” Benefit Auction for the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, New Orleans, Oct. 13-15.
- Workshops: “Photography and the Non-traditional Form” online workshop with The Griffin Museum of Photography, Sept. 10- Oct. 22. Also “Objet d’Art” in-person workshop at Santa Fe Workshops, Oct. 31-Nov. 4.
Where to buy:
Get social:
- Instagram: @marcy_palmer
- Facebook: marcy.palmer.75
- Website: marcypalmer.com
