Artist Statement

"Some people travel far and wide, some people travel near and deep".  I am in the latter category.  I love to paint the area that is within hiking distance of my home in rural Brown County, Indiana.  I know the intimacies of the land, light, plants, animals, flowers, weather, and seasons of that land.  I know which season the light is high and glarey and when the sun casts long shadows in the hollers.  I know when the March mauves are about ready to yield to the ethereal greens of spring pushing through the soil and when the sumac starts to change to bright red indicating the imminent arrival of fall.  I don't just show up in Brown County to paint for a day or a week or a month but for over 25 years now.  My paintings reflect the depth of feeling and knowledge I have gained through daily, intimate contact with the land and the forest.

A collector once commented about my paintings, “Most people paint the vista.  You paint the trail to the vista”.   I paint the forest with oils on panels using palette knives.  I paint both on location in all four seasons and in the studio.  I capture the vibrant energy of the forest and nature in each painting.  I paint the wildflowers and cultivated flowers that grow on my property, bordering the forest.  I "encourage" the wildflowers to flourish on my farm.  I maintain gardens of edible fruits and vegetables that I share with the wild critters like the deer and rabbits and opossums.  I also collect wild edibles both in the forest and on my farm.

I hike with my dogs at least two miles every day up and down the hills in the forest. Herons and mallards land on the pond full of fragrant lotus blossoms in mid-summer.  Dozens of delicate hummingbirds flock to the feeders and flowers I keep for them.  My two riding horses, Ponies of America (POA), graze in the pasture.  I call them my "adult size Shetland ponies". 

In addition to maintaining a studio and gallery on my property at the edge of Yellowwood State Forest and this online gallery, I travel to top ranked art festivals throughout the country to exhibit and sell my original oil paintings.  Born and raised in Muncie, Indiana, I graduated from Burris Laboratory School, attended Ball State University, and then went on to graduate from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana with degrees in Fine Arts and English.  I bought my farm in Brown County, Indiana in 1987 and have lived here, happily, ever since.

Charlene Marsh's Resume

To learn more about the nuts and bolts of Charlene Marsh's professional achievements, please click a link below:

Grants and Awards

Public Collections and Public Commissions

Galleries, Solo, and Invitational Exhibitions

Juried Group Exhibitions

Juried Art Fairs

Education, Affiliations, Lectures, Teaching Experience, Juror, Artist in Residencies

Film and Television Appearances

Publications