September 8th – October 24th 2025
Artists’ Reception: Thursday September 18th 6-8 pm
with a Brief Gallery Talk at 7pm
Marat layers and remixes everyday objects, found objects (a satellite dish, computer parts, a furnace filter, x-rays etc.) with pieces of wood, metals, resins and paint, to create 3-d pieces that are unexpected and fascinating due to his disassembling/reassembling process. The same piece can be changed over several years with multiple iterations that add to or shift the appearance. He is also exhibiting his “Fifteen Industrialists” series based around important individuals within the Industrial Music genre. Learn more about these and other works of assemblage and mixed media at Marat’s artist reception on Thursday September 18th from 6-8 pm, with a brief artist talk at 7pm.
Marat Paransky – Artist Statement
Years ago, I used to joke that if my art career did not work out, I would become a garbageman. Oddly enough, today I find myself somewhere between the worlds of art and refuse. This project, Wastelands, is driven by an interest in the discarded, temporary and overlooked. It is a deep dive into those interesting-looking chance objects, designs and materials that pass through our hands on a daily basis, unnoticed. Along with these found objects and images, the raw materials for this group of works are my older artworks, my studio waste (leftover paints and glues) and other people’s studio waste—the dead ends of art production.
The above elements are mixed and remixed into new works in several cycles. Some of the resulting collages and assemblages may go through three to five iterations, each one several years apart. Certain works will have no foreseeable end point, while others are disassembled and the parts reused. I find that I enjoy mutating the artworks on a continuous basis and exploring what happens when there is no defined end goal and no “official version”.
Wastelands draws inspiration from the absurdity and chance encounters of Dada, as well as the sampling and experimentation of Industrial music.
The Woods Gallery is located in the lower level of the Huntington Woods Library and is open during library hours.