Black Stalk
signed and dated 2006 (lower left)
oil on canvas
20” x 16” (51 cm x 41 cm)

In Marina Cruz’s works, both the method of display and the individual images operate simultaneously on several different levels. She is predisposed in each exhibition to use her diverse collection of antique, nominal, and semantic material in such a way as to bring into attention some characteristic of painterly representation.

Black Stalk is typical of Marina Cruz’ works that simulate the spaces and movement in an abandoned house. Composed in haunting perspectives, Black Stalk captures the elements of an interior space with household objects still intact but slowly surrendering to the passage of time.

The elements of the interiors in Marina Cruz’s paintings are not only literal, but exquisite, metaphorical representations of memory.

Here, the act of painting is not merely a photographic recording, but also a means to alter how something can be seen in a different light.