Marsha Glazière (pronounced glah-ze-a. Yes, it’s French) is a local artist who operates a studio out of her St. Nicholas waterfront home.
HOW LONG HAS SHE BEEN AN ARTIST?
25 years.
WHO WAS YOUR MAIN INFLUENCE?
“My father was an artist and a surgeon. I was brought up with art and had lots of exposure and validation along the way. It was inevitable. It [art] chose me instead of me choosing it.”
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
“In the second grade, crayons were the prize for getting our work done. I was fortunate to travel to a lot of art museums as a child.”
WHAT MEDIUMS DO YOU USE?
“Mostly acrylic paintings plus sculpture, mixed media and encaustic pieces.”
WHAT IS ENCAUSTIC?
“It’s a very old process of mixing dry pigments into beeswax and torching it. By heating it you set it.”
WHY PICK ACRYLIC OVER OIL PAINT?
“I learned to paint in oils but it takes too long to dry. Acrylics dry fast but all mediums are toxic. I lost my tastebuds last year, but when you’re in the moment, the last thing you think of is strapping on a respirator and losing your concentration.”
HOW DO YOU STAY FOCUSED?
“Years of discipline; going to work like everybody else. I try to travel, to see and experience as much as I can. Inspiration is my driving factor. I am most inspired by writers, dancers, philosophers and humanitarians because they get me thinking. It’s listening, reading and learning. It’s hard to keep going for 25 years unless your mind is open to new ideas.”
PRACTICING WHAT SHE PREACHES
“Human Tapestry,” a piece depicting multi-cultural harmony she designed in 1989, is being marketed again because of renewed interest. “The proceeds will go to a peace-fostering group like Amnesty International.”
HAVE YOU HELD ANY OTHER OCCUPATIONS?
“I had a catering business in Seattle. I am teaching art at the college level and work with at-risk students.”
HOMETOWN
Miami.
WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO JACKSONVILLE?
“I came here on sabbatical in 1996 and stayed because of the weather and Big Talbot Island. For four years it [the island] was like a sanctuary but now they stopped allowing dogs on Big Talbot Island and there is no swimming.”
EDUCATION
Glazière has a bachelor’s degree in fine art from the University of Illinois. She also studied anatomy at the University of Washington School of Medicine to enhance her understanding of the human form. Experts at Stanford and Yale also instructed her in the craft.
WHY ZERO IN ON EQUESTRIAN AND HUMAN FORMS?
“Horses are a natural evolution from the figure. It’s an appreciation of the form itself instead of my equestrian ability. I still paint human figures. I used what I learned [about anatomy] to go beyond what I learned in art school.”
WHAT OTHER SUBJECTS INSPIRE YOU?
“I have done a lot of work about Oaxaca, Mexico. The architectural images and landscape images allow me to deal with abstraction and experimentation in materials.”
WHAT’S REWARDING ABOUT BEING AN ARTIST?
“The absolute privilege and freedom to be who I am, stay creative and be my own boss. I’m most proud of the amount of work and artistic growth I have experienced.”
WHAT’S MOST CHALLENGING?
“The visual challenges of material, ideas and basic elements.”
WHAT’S HER NEWEST PROJECT?
The Wynn Bone Gallery in St. Augustine will host one of her exhibitions starting Feb. 22. She is also showing at North Beach Gallery on Amelia Island and at the state capital building in November.
WHERE ELSE HAS SHE SHOWN WORK?
Galleries, museums, schools and companies nationwide have showcased her work, including Viscosity Gallery, Jacksonville Museum of Modern Art, Friesen Gallery in Seattle and Idaho, Wiseman Gallery/Rogue College in Oregon and Klausner/Cooperage Gallery in Kentucky. International exhibitions include Paris, Barcelona, Amsterdam and Budapest.
OTHER ACCOLADES
A proponent of helping troubled children, Glazière has worked with the Boys and Girls Club of Northeast Florida and CANVAS (Cultural Arts Network of Volunteers, Artists and Students). She created a commemorative painting for San Marco Carnival and her work is collected by the law firm Holland & Knight and attorney/law professor Nancy Hogshead-Makar. Body and Soul also wants her to be its curator of visual arts for its healing-through-arts program at Baptist Medical Center.
HOBBIES
Horseback riding, dining at Mossfire Grill and taking in a foreign film are favorite distractions. At home, she’s watching “Judging Amy” or reading a novel by Chilean author Isabel Allende. Trained as a modern dancer, Glazière cranks up Latin music to get her creative juices flowing.
HOW WOULD YOU CHARACTERIZE YOUR WORK?
“When people ask what category I’m in, I say I’m not in a category. It’s most important to be true to my own vision and challenge myself. I rarely pick up art magazines and I don’t follow trends. A lot of it is just hard work.”
FAMILY
She has two grown children, Maya and Josh.
— by Monica Chamness