My Story

Beginnings

I grew up in an apartment building in the city of Chicago. From my earliest memories, I knew I was meant to be an artist. I had no trees, flowers, mountains, butterflies, oceans, or big skies to inspire me. But there was beauty all around me.

I had distressed brick walls, rusty patches of metal, cement sidewalks, weathered wood, glimmering gravel, jagged cracks in dusty windows, and the patterns created by rows of windows in large buildings.

These surfaces reflected stunning colors in the sunlight and amazing prisms of color when covered in ice. Summer rains brought lovely puddles. Winter snows displayed endless beauty clinging to railings, doorsteps, and window sills. I found abstract artistry in everyday textures, patterns, shapes, and colors.

Today I showcase the exciting interplay of colors, textures, and patterns in my “Hidden” series of artworks. Each small piece within my mixed media artworks is a painting within a painting, and all the surfaces work together to form a larger statement.

Biography

Marjorie Sarnat is an award-winning mixed-media artist whose works are in collections worldwide. Born and raised in Chicago, she is an alumna of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and earned a BFA degree from Eastern Michigan University. She also studied with painting master Joe Abbrescia, for whom she taught art in his acclaimed Chicago art school.

Marjorie’s artwork blends her love for painting and drawing with her passion for color, texture, and patterns. For her “Hidden” series’ she invented a signature dimensional collage technique.

The Hidden Treasures series contains antique glass and found treasure embedded within layers of metallics and painted texture. Poetic messages, realistic imagery, and paintings within paintings are there for the viewer to discover. Hidden Harmonies, created in the signature style, portrays shapes of guitars, pianos, violins, and more.

Marjorie’s Kleo Kats are inspired by the great master Gustav Klimt. The cats incorporate a profusion of patterns, textures, and rich colors, with special attention given to the cats’ radiant eyes.

As the N.Y. Times best-selling author and illustrator of the adult coloring books, "Creative Cats” and "Owls”, she has earned a legion of fans worldwide. The books have been translated into 18 languages and have sold over 3 million copies. Her imaginative coloring book illustrations are influenced by her love of patterns and her lifelong passion for collecting vintage illustrated books and ephemera. She has illustrated an additional 30 adult coloring books that are unique in their nostalgic and whimsical style.

Marjorie has authored 5 books on art techniques and the creative process itself. Her book, “Creative Genius: How to Grow the Seeds of Creativity Within Every Child,” has earned accolades from experts in the field.

Marjorie lives in Southern California with her designer husband, artist daughter, creative son, and two dogs.

Artist’s Statement

Hidden Treasures Series — “I create multi-layered surfaces on canvas to showcase the interactions between colors and textures. Metallic accents complement imagery, words, and bits of found objects. The figurative images are my own; other motifs are culled from my collection of antique books. I evaluate each dab of paint, scrap of paper, and fragment of ephemera for its color, texture, and symbolic meaning. I use these details impressionistically to form my compositions. A special tribute: Embedded in each artwork are bits of handmade glass inherited from my uncle who collected them in Europe a lifetime ago. The tiny cabochons are inspiring works of art themselves, which I include as homage to past generations.”

Hidden Harmonies Series — “My newest mixed media paintings, Hidden Harmonies, are an exciting continuation of my “Hidden” series. They display musical instruments and paraphernalia in my dimensional collage style. The first group of paintings feature guitars. You’ll see a familiar shape, a musical instrument, and upon a closer look see an intricate harmony of texture, color, and pattern. As you scan over the surface you’ll discover smaller artistic compositions — what I call paintings within paintings. Get ready to be taken away on a lyrical musical journey.”

About Kleo Kats — “Decoratively styled and inspired by Gustav Klimt, ‘Kleo Kats’ are a contemporary portrayal of a beloved subject—cats. My original paintings incorporate a profusion of patterns, textures, and rich colors. The open-edition fine art giclées in my Shop are of the highest quality and faithful to the originals. As the original artist of Kleo Kats, I am proud to offer these authorized artworks to you. They are guaranteed to be of the highest quality, and your satifaction is my highest priority.”