Marlene Wiedenbaum’s “Natural World”

Featured October Artist: This month, enjoy the all-new exhibit, “Natural World,” featuring the pastel naturescapes of Marlene Wiedenbaum.

About Marlene Wiedenbaum

Marlene Wiedenbaum, an award-winning pastel artist, is well known for her realistic Hudson Valley landscapes. She is a PSA-MP graduate of Queens College, SUNY New Paltz and attended the Art Students League in New York City.

Her award-winning works have been exhibited internationally, including the International Pastel Artists Invitational in Taiwan and the Xi’an Museum in China. Her work is among six International Master Pastelists featured in two textbooks commissioned by the Taiwanese government.

Wiedenbaum has been featured in several art publications, the most recent being the June 2021 edition of VIC Pastel, the Newsletter of the Pastel Society of Victoria, Australia. Her Hudson Valley landscapes have been featured in Fine Art Connoisseur and her works have also been featured in Art Times and American Artist.

In 2010, Wiedenbaum was awarded a residency at Platte Clove through the Catskill Center for Conservation and Development. A Master Pastelist, Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America, and an Elected Member of the Audubon Artists Inc., Wiedenbaum is also an active member of such prestigious arts organizations as the Woodstock Artists Association & Museum, NYPAP and LongReach Arts. Marlene is currently serving on the Board of Governors of the Pastel Society of America.

Wiedenbaum states, “I am a passionate realist, primarily using a palette of soft pastels, sanded paper, and a kneaded eraser. For me, the excitement starts when I first discover a subject and decide on a composition. My early years of working in the abstract helped me refine my handling of the medium and sharpen my understanding of shape and form as it manifests in the natural world. Describing what I see in a visual language I understand, is a challenging aspect of the process. I am compelled as an artist to reflect the world I live in, to look keenly at my environment, the subjects and objects within it, and present it to the viewer in an engaging way. I am equally excited by the challenges and resolution of each shape, color and form that I face within a painting. Each resolve leads to the next, and just like the treasures of the Hudson River Valley, some are discernible, some are hidden.”

Wiedenbaum teaches pastel classes and plein-air workshops at the Woodstock School of Art. Her work is in private and public collections throughout the country.

Marlene Wiedenbaum’s exhibit runs through October 30. Admission is free and artwork is available for acquisition.

To view her work, visit our online gallery.

Gallery Location & Hours

All artwork is available for acquisition and admission is free. Geary Gallery is open to the public Wednesday through Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and is located at 576 Boston Post Road, Darien, CT 06820. For more information, call (203) 655-6633.