“….art is the privileged space of contemplation, and as such, a reprieve and sanctuary from the barbarism of the world…” art critic, Donald Kuspit

Ross’ paintings are luminous, atmospheric illusions intended to engage a dialogue between the patient viewer and the subtle layers of color and texture that appear from the canvas. Ross wants his artwork to serve as a contemplative respite for viewers who can deeply focus and lose themselves in thought and time.

Ross creates paintings that combine two visual concepts. When viewed from some distance his canvases have a soft, luminous, atmospheric glow obscuring surface detail, but when a viewer approaches the canvas for closer inspection, its phosphorescent effect retreats into the surface revealing the many subtle, intricate details that comprise the whole. Surfaces are built up using a variety of acrylic media, including iridescent and interference colors, applied in translucent to almost transparent layers. Marc often draws on the canvasses between paint applications using pastels, pencils and color pencils to affect the overall image and to shift color values. Some paint layers are scraped into with sponges, sticks or fingers. An electric sander is used to smooth out any build-up of texture and to bring forward colors and patterns obscured in previous layers. Each application of paint is lapped over the side of the canvas leaving a visual memory map of the process for those who are willing to look around the ragged edges. In this way, he emphasizes that the surface is an illusion of nothing more than paint. Ross’s most recent paintings incorporate an internalized frame showing the progression of preceding color layers early in the life of the painting, an important continuation of his desire to leave exposed portions of the painting process.