Soho House New York Hosts Artist Marc Dennis for Studio Tour

NEW YORK, NY - During Frieze Week, Soho House New York hosted a studio tour with American artist Marc Dennis in his new studio in Brooklyn on Thursday evening, May 5th. The private VIP member event drew over fifty people to Dennis' studio on a rainy night in the posh neighborhood of dumbo Brooklyn, a very popular waterfront enclave nestled between the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges, known for its charm and picturesque views of the lower Manhattan skyline.

Marc Dennis is known for his hyper-realistic and strikingly detailed paintings of subtly staged and slightly voyeuristic images of contemporary pop culture. Interested in the transformative possibilities of familiar iconic images and visual tropes, Dennis explores the charged subjects of beauty, power and pleasure. Many of his paintings touch upon the psychological, spiritual and physical relationships we have with art.

Dennis' studio is housed in a large industrial building in the heart of dumbo. Guests were greeted street level by two women dressed in all black, who directed people to the elevator. Upon entering the artist's large studio on the third floor, visitors were treated to a range of fine edibles and wine catered by Foragers, a high-end luxury gourmet market based in dumbo and Chelsea. A fine bottle of tequila was a fitting touch for those attendees who wished to include a nod to Cinco de Mayo during their visit.

Dennis greeted each guest and after a crowd assembled he spoke passionately about the approximate dozen paintings in various stages in his studio. Charmed by the artist's flair for conversation and his desire to readily share information about his work, process, and art history and pop culture, attendees listened eager and enthusiastically and were encouraged to ask question throughout.

One question in particular, which Dennis mentioned he is often asked, is what does he consider to be the difference between a photo-realist and hyper-realist painter? The answer he said is somewhat simple in that photo-realist artists often need only one photograph to work from as reference and therefore do not "violate the photograph" from which they are working; and the hyper-realist, at least in his case, uses many photos and "takes liberties with most if not all" from which one uses as references. An example is his monumental painting, "Money Shot," an image of Michelangelo's David with a motocross rider jumping overhead in a potentially perilous performance piece. There were many photographs used as reference for this painting as there are in many of his works. In the words of the artist, "I can never have enough reference material to work from; in this day and age of image hailstorms, I embrace the barrage, where every now and then inspiration rolls out and lands at my feet."

Marc Dennis' work can be viewed on his website: http://www.marcdennis.com

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/marcdennis

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarcDennisPainter

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