Marna Zanoff

My work is about color & movement, echoing the beauty and rhythms of nature and life. Most of my paintings are created by adding many thin layers of acrylic glazing, producing complex, beautiful luminous colors. Very time consuming, each layer must dry before painting another. New textures and shapes form with each new layer – hues sitting on top of each other, rather than mixed or applied thicker create new complex colors, textures with great depth. When finished, colors and shapes appear through all the earlier layers. I studied photography and painting at American University, the Washington Studio School and the Smithsonian Institution. During my 25 years as a professional underwater photographer, my work illustrated the incredible beauty of underwater life. My painting career started early – first painting oils on canvas, capturing images of sea life. About 26 years ago I transitioned to acrylics and shifted from realism to abstract. No longer diving and photographing,