Reviewer Quotes

Judy Collischan, Ph.D
Kouros Gallery Exhibition Catalogue, June 2006
Author of Welded Sculpture of the Twentieth Century

Beaghmore VIII

Her preference for organicism is manifest in an emphasis on asymmetry over symmetry and modulation over strict adherence to geometric constructs.  Circular, and vessel shapes often suggest female anatomy, especially torsos or breasts.  Overlays of subtle patina tones both soften and accentuate pierced, gouged, scraped, and stamped surfaces.  Overall configurations complimented by textural details result in a strong tactile appeal combined with visual attraction that at once engages the eye while tempting the hand.

The sensitivity and vulnerability of Weil’s work bears testimony to the intersection of ephemeral existence with the continuities of humankind and nature.  The presence of her oeuvre as a whole belies an enigmatic mystique evoking a sense of recognition in our collective subconscious as well as our individual souls.

Gwendolen Groocock
The Suffolk Times, April 14, 2005

Bronze casting is an ancient craft, but artist Marianne Weil has turned it into a fresh new way to teach the value of art and higher education to a group of Greenport students.

In a unique art project, a dozen Greenport High School students are collaborating on a large bronze sculpture that will eventually be on display in the community. The project (MariTime Bronze) is funded by a $5,000. grant from the New York State Council for the Arts. Only a few Suffolk County artists and art organizations are awarded the highly competitive grants each year.

Cynthia Nadelman
Sculpture Magazine, November 2004

“There were depths to this exhibition that made it more than just a look at Marianne Weil’s work of the past few years. The steadfastness of bronze and the strength of the artists relationship with the material were pervasive.

…Weil works with bronze as a material, from modeling the pieces directly in wax to applying the patinas. There is a hands-on sculptorliness to the work that reveals its roots in a postwar vocabulary-- Weil’s references-from cultural anthropology to the body-are strictly her own…more easily compared to her baby-boomer generation’s attraction to Surrealism and biomorphic forms… In fact it’s amazing what a diversity of potentialities Weil’s vertically oriented, upright forms embrace--almost literally. In silhouette, many of the works stand like people or confront like torsos.

….Intimacy and public address exist here side by side. The inspiration behind each of these works always seems to be broad and far reaching humanity.”

Marion Wolberg Weiss
Dan's Papers, 5/02/2001

“...Sculpture by Marianne Weil seems lighter by comparison, both in size and scope. Simply speaking, it's easier to get a handle on their formal aesthetics and concepts, deriving from both ornate and primal configurations and themes.”

Helen Harrison
New York Times, 6/04/2000

“Marianne Weil juxtaposes her bronze sculptures with prints by Ellen Weiner and paintings by Myrna Burks to highlight the effects of layering in various media...the subtle buildup of tones and textures in Ms. Weil’s rich patinas, in the diptych ‘During the Fall I and II,’ ...”

Liz Wood
Community, The Suffolk Times, 5/25/2000

“Ms. Weil’s two- and three-dimensional pieces suggest in their textures and patina an ancient narrative frieze or ceremonial relic...”

Erica-Lynn Gambino
The Southhampton Press, 4/23/1998

“Sculpted directly in wax and mixed media, these unique castings are appealing on many levels. For one, they instantly evoke the texture and sensibility of hand-sculpted pottery. “Columbia,” a spherical object, is textured with crater-like holes around its entirety. Like an enlarged, primeval Fabergé egg “Columbia” provokes the viewer to touch and marvel at its surface. Both “Sogno,” a gourd-like object, and “Trace,” also bear the crater holes and marks which categorize Ms. Weil’s works. “Atlas,” a long, thin figurative object, looks oddly— and amiably—like a giraffe with a globe for a head. An abstracted creature, “Atlas,” resembles Giacometti’s figurative works....”

Phyllis Braff
The New York Times, Sunday Art Review, 4/19/1998

"There is a degree of sophistication in Ms. Weil's three-dimensional and relief bronzes that incorporate bits of exotic nature in their schemes. Some of the most elegant examples were inspired by a residency fellowship in Hawaii. In all, a handsome, carefully toned and worked patina is important to the impact."

Annette Hinkle
Sag Harbor Express, 4/02/1998

“...Unlike many artists who work in bronze, after her pieces have been cast by the foundry, Weil does all the finishing, chasing and patina work herself. ...While (she) incorporates natural materials into her bronzes, there is something distinctly deliberate in the placement of these materials that speaks to civilizations now long departed from the terrain we think we know so well. Whether inspired by the Polynesians whose sacred rock structures still dot the Hawaiian landscape, or the megaliths of Brittany, for Marianne Weil, the voice of the ancients speak across oceans and time.”

Helen Harrison
New York Times, 8/03/1997

“The lament of a land-bound spirit inspired Marianne Weil to inscribe a line from Emily Dickinson on the slates of a winding path in the waterfront park at the bus terminal off Fourth Street. ‘Futile the winds to a heart in port’ poignantly evokes the longing for the absent lover, yet is equally valid as a sailor’s yearning to return to the sea.”