1982
Edward Marecak was an American painter who was born in 1919. Growing up in the farming community of Brunswick, Ohio, he showed early artistic promise, hired by the National Youth Administration to document historic barns. In 1946, Marecak came to the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center for a year and after a semester interlude at Cranbrook returned to study lithography with Lawrence Barrett. There he also met his future wife and sometime collaborator, ceramicist Theresa Madonna Fortin. Given the opportunity to teach a summer course at the University of Colorado, he decided to obtain a teaching certificate at the University of Denver and subsequently embarked on his 25-year career in the Denver Public School system. Rather than pursue fame, Edward Marecak directed his zeal toward fostering younger generations in the principles of art as well as his simple philosophies. Moreover, his teaching salary allowed him to ply his prodigious talent at whatever he pleased, instead of bending to the dictates of trends and sales. Having inherited his faith in education from his Slovakian immigrant parents, Marecak could add the shaping of lives to his mastery of art forms, including lithographs, monoprints, drawings, hooked rugs, ceramics, paintings, wood sculptures, stained-glass windows and jewelry. While exhibiting in his lifetime, he was, in his wife’s words, “his own greatest collector”, but shows and his popularity at the Kirkland Museum have positioned Marecak posthumously among Colorado’s pre-eminent modernists. As a child, Marecak was enthralled by the Carpathian tales of magic and supernatural beings told by his grandmother. As with other artists with roots in Eastern Europe, his artistic turn to folk tradition would free him from learned practices of perspective and modeling in favor of flat patterns within patterns and brilliant, throbbing color. While others ventured further into abstraction, Marecak stylized figurative elements into crowded compositions that appeared like a mosaic or stained glass. As he matured, he could declare, “I am still very much a Byzantine designer and my joy with what color can do grows all the time”. The traceries of strong outlines and bold shapes provide compartments for vibrant colors, contrasts and rough textures that can scarcely be contained. The Kirkland Museum staged a retrospective of Edward and Donna Marecak in 2007.
Edward Marecak “Three Fates Confused” 1970s Abstract Figurative Oil Painting
By Edward Marecak
Located in Denver, CO
A vibrant and imaginative abstract figurative oil painting by noted Denver modernist Edward Marecak, titled Three Fates Confused. Created in the 1970s, thi...
Oil
Edward Marecak 1980s Three Figures Semi Abstract Oil Painting Modern Art
By Edward Marecak
Located in Denver, CO
This original 1980s oil on canvas by Edward Marecak presents a compelling example of the artist’s mature style, blending semi-abstract composition with recognizable human forms. The ...
Oil
Edward Marecak 1987 Enchanted Garden Abstract Textured Modernist Oil Painting
By Edward Marecak
Located in Denver, CO
"Enchanted Garden” is an exceptional 1987 original abstract oil painting by acclaimed Colorado artist Edward Marecak (1919–1993), known for his distinctive fusion of American Moderni...
Canvas, Oil
Edward Marecak Semi-Abstract Mythological Oil Painting Modernist Figures
By Edward Marecak
Located in Denver, CO
A bold and highly collectible mid-century modern oil painting by Edward Marecak, this semi-abstract mythological composition exemplifies the artist’s signature fusion of classical narrative, symbolic figuration, and vibrant modernist abstraction. Rendered in richly layered oil, the painting transforms ancient mythological subject matter into a dynamic, color-saturated visual language. Stylized human figures emerge through bold outlines, patterned surfaces, and interlocking color fields, creating a composition that feels both narrative and abstract at once. Marecak’s approach is deeply rooted in his Slovak heritage and fascination with folklore, opera, and Greek mythology, which he consistently reinterpreted through a modernist lens. Rather than depicting literal scenes, he constructs symbolic environments where figures, gestures, and architectural forms merge into a rhythmic, mosaic-like structure. The result is a visually complex and emotionally charged work that reflects Marecak’s position as one of Colorado’s most distinctive mid-century modernists. His practice bridges folk-inspired imagery, surrealist abstraction, and postwar expressionism, placing him firmly within the broader evolution of American modern art. Mythological works such as this are among the most sought-after in Marecak’s oeuvre, as they represent his most fully realized synthesis of storytelling and abstraction. These compositions often feature densely layered surfaces, bold chromatic contrasts, and theatrical figuration that echoes both Byzantine iconography and modernist experimentation. A long-standing figure in the Denver modern...
Oil
Edward Marecak "Fertility Goddesses" Mid-Century Modern Figurative Oil Painting
By Edward Marecak
Located in Denver, CO
Edward Marecak (American, 1919–1993) Fertility Goddesses, 1950 Oil on board Signed lower right, Titled and dated verso Image: 36 × 24 inches Framed: 37½ × 25¼ × 1½ inches A remarkab...
Oil
Large-Scale Edward Marecak Abstract Figurative Painting, 1991, Expressionist Art
By Edward Marecak
Located in Denver, CO
“I Have the Trump Card” is a bold and psychologically charged 1991 oil painting by acclaimed Denver modernist Edward Marecak, whose visionary body of work merged folklore, mythology,...
Oil
Striking and colorful figurative oil painting by Edward Marecak
By Edward Marecak
Located in Colfax, CA
A bold and strikingly colorful abstract painting of two women by American artist Edward Marecak. Titled 'Two Mystic Ladies out Mystifying Each Other'. This work is an oil painting on...
Oil
Untitled (Abstract Figural Composition), Acrylic on Canvas, 1975
Located in Astoria, NY
Ruth Mollo (American, XX), Untitled (Abstract Figural Composition), Acrylic on Canvas, 1975, signed and dated lower right, wood frame. Image: 48.25" H x 36" W; frame: 49" H x 36.75"...
Canvas, Acrylic
homage, Painting, Oil on Canvas
By Edward Zelinsky
Located in Yardley, PA
I had a hard time titling this because it just came from nowhere (the best place). Today I remembered a wonderful little film that I saw about Rousseau called "Always on Sunday". It was made by Ken...
Oil
Eros 2, Modern Abstract Oil Painting on Plywood, Signed, 1980s
By Mino Meno
Located in Roma, IT
Oil on plywood realized in 1980s. Titled and signed on rear. Very good condition.
Oil
Large 1967 Surrealist Figurative Oil Painting, Spanish Post-War Modernism
By Eduardo Arranz-Bravo
Located in Sitges, Barcelona
Artist: Eduardo Arranz-Bravo (Barcelona, 1941 – 2023) Title: Woman, Man’s Head, Two Pears and Orange Background Year: 1967 Medium: Oil on canvas (with drawing) Dimensions: 97 × 130 c...
Oil
Erotic Clown Diva Painting, Abstract Expressionist, Oil on Paperboard
By Jerry W Ward
Located in Soquel, CA
Wonderfully vivid abstract expressionist painting by San Francisco artist Jerry W Ward (American, b. 1968), circa 2000. Titled "Erotic Clown Diva" and signed verso. Condition: Good....
Oil, Cardboard
