Walking the exhibit floor, I met Marisa Murrow at MHI Congress and Expo in Las Vegas. The first thing I noticed were artful depictions, in oil paint and wood of what appeared to me as historical reminders of the roots of the Manufactured Housing industry.
In fact, Marisa was the artist whose painting was chosen by MHI to grace the front cover of the brochure for Congress & Expo.
When art and industry come together, it inevitably draws my attention. We spoke for a bit in her booth on the exhibit floor and I asked her to send me some images and her bio information to post here.
I hope you enjoy looking at the images of her work as much as I enjoyed the work itself. If you’d like to own some Manufactured Housing art, Marisa’s contact info is at the end of the post.
All images are © copyright Marisa Murrow.
Click the image below to see a larger version.
Artist Statement
I paint and collect visual information on site; producing small, intimate portraits of mobile homes along the Southern California coast.
On mountains sheltered from the rest of the city I direct my critical gaze at a mobile home park. The aerial perspective from which I paint is an exploration of the shifting social landscape present in Los Angeles. We are neither here or there in this ambiguously flat yet dimensional landscape. I began this series by eliminating the edge of the hill I was standing on to allow the viewer to loom above the park. I wanted to create a state of transition; an in between place. This work resulted out of an unplanned experience where I packed all of my possessions into the car and left my apartment in one day. I felt completely vulnerable and unattached to the security I thought I had created.
I paint the stuff people want to omit from their oceanfront properties; trailers, and mobile homes, telephone wires, trash cans and rooftops. The visual rhythm of each structure is designed to be a collection of abstract paintings of contemporary thought. I begin with a thin wash of burnt sienna or vibrant green which peeks though the paint to create dimension on the surface. These colors also lend a warm temperature to the work, reflecting the heat this city experiences year round. Mobile home parks are commonly perceived as gritty, unpretentious and rather low income means of shelter. The homes depicted in this body of work face the Pacific Ocean like a captive audience, worshipping the waves and the sun. The viewer is offered a delightful protest to the endless search for connection to nature in the excessively materialistic setting of Los Angeles. With the ocean at their front door for almost free, these homes on wheels need not roll away anytime soon.
Biography
Marisa Murrow was born in Los Angeles. She received her Bachelors of Fine Arts from the Rhode Island School of Design. She has traveled all over the world exploring the art and culture. India and Indonesia left a significant and lasting impression on her creative path. A traveler in her place of origin, Murrow collects visual information on site; producing small, intimate landscape paintings of Southern California.
Murrow has exhibited her work at the California Heritage Museum, the McLean Gallery, Schomberg Gallery, Bergamot Station, LA Design Center, LACMA Rental Gallery, The Korean Cultural Center, The Red House Gallery, The Folk Art Museum, Los Angeles, Gallery 825, Topo Ranch, The Rose Cafe, Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, San Diego Art Institute, Project Angel Food Art Auction, Garboushian Gallery, Beverly Hills, The Museum of the Living Artist, San Diego, Palos Verdes Art Center, The Bowers Museum, Santa Ana, the McNish Gallery at Oxnard College and the Brand Library Art Galleries, City of Glendale. Marisa Murrow is represented by the Garboushian Gallery in Beverly Hills, California Marisa Murrow
1732 Westwood Blvd. #104 Los Angeles, CA 90024 310.489.0012
marisamurrow@yahoo.com