Offsite Gallery January 25 – March 8, 2019
MFA in Painting from Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, NY
BFA from Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL
Studied Art Education at VCU
Drawing Professor at the Richard Bland School of William & Mary, Petersurg, VA
Taught painting, sculpture, 3D design & scenic design at the Appomatox Regional Governor’s School in Petersburg, VA
Mark Pehanich is an abstract painter. He and wife Dolly Holmes have had an ongoing dialog as artists for more than 25 years. “Dolly and Mark use line, shape and color to illustrate the intuitive…The pairing makes visual sense: Holmes’ uncluttered expanses and Pehanich’s carefully considered simplicities complement each other in a push and pull rooted in primitivism and abstract expressionism. Both convey a vibrant tranquility that’s devoid of complication or distraction. By giving their paintings room to breathe, the elemental approach frees the viewer from the demands of literal interpretation.” Chris Bopst, Style Weekly, February 12, 2016
Mark states “Abstract painting offers me the freedom to play and create in the same way. My work is based on possibility through unselfconscious drawing and doodling as I improvise without intention. The process is disciplined, but guided entirely by intuition and the joy of creating art.”
Mark Pehanich was born and raised in Westchester, Illinois near Chicago. He earned his BFA at Northern Illinois University and an MFA at Brooklyn College where he studied with Lee Bontecou, Phillip Pearlstein, Allan D’Arcangelo, and Lennart Anderson. After 18 years in Brooklyn, Mark and his wife moved to Petersburg, Virginia where they renovated an 1850 cotton and peanut warehouse that now houses their studios.
Growing up in the Chicago area, Mark frequently visited and was inspired by a concentration of Frank Lloyd Wright houses near his suburban home. The Prairie Style is reflected in an early series of paintings depicting complex roadways, bridges and overpasses. Moving to New York led to a series of works depicting parts of the Cyclone roller coaster in Coney Island. Geometric abstractions based on small maquettes dominated his work until moving to Virginia. His current work is derived from combining and layering multiple small sketches and designs into unique compositions. He often works with unusual materials like oxidized metallic paints, and additives such as glass beads, clay, or powdered tire rubber.
Mark has exhibited paintings and sculpture widely, including the Brooklyn Museum, Stamford Museum, Butler Institute of Art, El Paso Museum, and Kyoto Gallery, in Japan. He has created murals in Brooklyn, New York and a large mobile in Richmond, Virginia and is a former officer of the Sculptors Guild.
