Artist Statement
There is a tension between the marsh's chaos and the serene flatness of the water that I find compelling.
-- Marcy Dunn Ramsey
My work is an exploration into the relationship between the natural world and the human psyche.
Marshes are a primary source of inspiration, and the tangle and chaos of the grasses and reeds is a vehicle to explore the vitality of the life cycle. There is a tension between the complex linear qualities of the marsh and the serene flatness of the reflective surface of the water that is very expressive, and encourages a personal response. The eloquent gestures of looping, twisted reeds, the intersections in a stand of marsh grass, the staccato shapes of dark and light stalks, or the muted forms of submerged leaves communicate a resonance through a lyrical language of signs. The grace of these simple phenomena is fleeting yet leaves its mark, and ignites a sense of recognition. The sky enters largely into this work as well, acting in role of light-giver. In its mirror image, we see the world upside-down, and the potential for disorientation can bring about new revelations of strength and fragility.
The artist’s work has been exhibited in galleries and private collections both here at home and internationally. She is a participant in the Art in the Embassies Program of the U.S. State Department, sending her work to Brazil, Russia, Indonesia and Africa. Her work is currently exhibited at the Carla Massoni Gallery, in Chestertown, MD and the I. Pinckney Gallery in Beaufort, SC. She is a member of the Academy of the Arts in Easton, MD, and the Maryland Federation of Art in Annapolis where she also shows regularly. She has also been featured on Maryland Public Telivision’s Artworks This Week program, and the clip can be viewed here along with a more complete representation of her work.
LOOK FOR MARCY'S WORK AT MASSONIART IN CHESTERTOWN and I. PINCKNEY SIMONS GALLERY IN CHARLESTON.
Ms. Ramsey’s studio is nestled into the bank of the upper Chester River where she observes its many moods. She and her husband John have raised two daughters and countless generations of chickens and dogs in this rural landscape. In the past few years she has become progressively more active in the Chester River Organization, whose mission is to restore the river to its previous health. She hopes to pursue her own mission, to convey through her work a sense of reverence for the natural world, for many years to come.
CHRONOLOGY
1967 Graduated from Emmanuel College, Cum Laude
1968 Boston Museum School of Fine Arts Art History
1968-69 St. Mary's College, MD. Design and Drawing
1971-75 University of Maine, Printmaking, Painting
1977-78 University of MD Printmaking, Drawing
1994 Maryland Institute Painting, Graphic Design
2012 Three week fellowship to the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts
EXHIBITIONS(One person)
2019
Carla Massoni Gallery “Turning”
2018
Carla Massoni Gallery “Line Dancing”
2017
Carla Massoni Gallery “Balancing Act”
2016
Carroll County Community College - one person show “Marsh Magic”
2016
Carla Massoni Gallery “Playing on the Edge”
2015
Carla Massoni Gallery “Line Dancing”
2014
Carla Massoni Gallery " Suspension"
2013
Carla Massoni Gallery "Caught in the Current"
2012
Carla Massoni Gallery "Aspiration"
2011
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Solace"
East End Gallery, Easton MD, "Water's Edge"
2010
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Passage"
2009
Carla Massoni Gallery, " Refuge"
2008
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Convergence"
2007
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Personal Perspective"
2006
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Ephemera"
2005
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Traces"
2004
Private showing, Lancaster Art Museum fundraiser,
Lancaster, PA.
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Shaped by Wind and Water"
2003
Crary Gallery, Warren PA.
"Marcy Ramsey, The First Thirty Years" Retrospective
2002
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Interiors"
2001
Artworks, "The Illustrator's Eye". Chestertown
2001
Adkins Arboretum, Centreville, MD
2000
Carla Massoni Gallery, Featured Artist August, 2000
Adkins Arboretum, Centreville, MD
1997
Marion Price Gallery, Centreville, MD
1994
Massoni-Sommer Gallery, Chestertown, MD
1990-91-93
Finishing Touch
1989
Chestertown Bank
1986
Gallery 5, Chestertown
1985
Washington College
1982
Easton Academy of Art
EXHIBITIONS (Group)
Arts in the Embassies Program
2012 Kiev, Ukraine
2010 Jakarta, Indonesia
2009 Gabarone, Africa
2000 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2014
MD at College Park, national juried show
2012
MD Federation of Art, "Landscape"
2011
MD Federation of Art, "Small Works"
2006
Artworks, Chestertown, MD Studio Tour and Exhibit
2006
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Gatherings"
2005
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Unwrapped"
2004
Winter Exhibition Carla Massoni Gallery
2004
Carla Massoni Gallery, "SOFA"
(Simply Outstanding Fine Art) Show
2004
Maryland Federation of Art , Annual Juried Show
2004
Maryland Federation of Art "Landscapes"
(2nd place award)
2004
Maryland Federation of Art "Go Figure"
2004
Maryland Federation of Art "Miniatures"
2003 Adkins Arboretum, Board Members Exhibit
2003
Carla Massoni Gallery, "Landscapes"
2002
Artworks Studio Tour and Exhibit
2002
Carla Massoni Gallery "Impressions I" Print Show
2002
Carla Massoni Gallery "To Keep a Rendezvous" Group Show
2001
Artworks Studio Tour and Exhibit
2000
Arts in the Embassies Program
(4 paintings chosen for the Brazilian Embassy)
1999
Radcliffe Mill Gallery, Chestertown, MD
1999
Works by Contemporary Maryland Artists Invitational:
"A Sense of Place", Annapolis, MD
1997
Easton Academy of Art Regional Show, Easton, MD
1994
Children's Capitol Museum, Washington, D. C.
1978-91
Chestertown Arts League Annual Shows
(Awards '78, '79, '80, '81, '83, '85)
1985
Norwalk Arts Council, "Fruit of the Womb"
1982-83
Westport Women's League, Westport, CT.
1985
Portside Framers, "Salon de Refusees", Annapolis, MD
1981-84
Maryland Federation of Art, Annapolis, (Award, 1984)
1980-84
Easton Academy of Art Annual Spring Shows (Award, 1981) Easton, MD
1978
University of MD Group Show, "The Bite of the Print",
College Park, MD
1975-76
Cambridge Artist' Association, Boston, Mass.
ORGANIZATIONS
Maryland Federation of Art, Annapolis, MD
Artworks, Chestertown, MD
Adkins Arboretum, Centreville MD
Chester River Association, Chestertown, MD