Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Osterman.
Mark, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I am an artist and museum education specialist. I have a Doctor of Education with a research focus in arts, literacy, and technology. I received a B.F.A. from the School of Visual Arts, an M.A. from New York University and a Doctorate from Florida International University. My work has crossed multiple mediums including drawing, sculpture, installation, digital collage, and painting. While living and working in Miami Beach, I have focused and explored digital collage and painting at length. Drawing upon mass media culture and contemporary social issues as a conceptual basis, I continue to try and refine my visual and conceptual vocabulary to create open ended narratives for the viewer to contend with.
My work can be found in public and private collections and has been seen in numerous exhibitions. I have been awarded a Visual Artist Fellowship Grant from the Anolic Foundation, an Artist Access Grant from Miami-Dade Department of Cultural Affairs, an Artist Residence from Atlantic Center for the Arts, and selected as a juried artist for the Art Center/South Florida.
Combining my artistic practice with learning I have taught at Miami Dade College, facilitated specialized workshops in art educational theory and practice for the University of Miami, The Lowe Art Museum, and The Wolfsonian-FIU.
Mark Osterman lives in Miami Beach, Florida.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
Over the past decade my work has been focused on exploring digital collage and painting at length. Drawing upon mass media culture and contemporary social issues as a conceptual basis I have continued to refine my visual and conceptual vocabulary to create open ended narratives for the viewer to contend with. My work is continually inspired by the media’s visual interpretation of the world contrasted against the world’s actual condition. The images employed by the media represent a mutual experience we all share and play an active role in shaping our perceptions.
As an artist, I want to take control of this process and use images that illustrate extreme contrasts of value and meaning and re-imagine them so that their significance and impact on our lives can be felt and realized. Through this process, images and moments that were originally meant to be transient and ephemeral are transformed into something that is lasting and substantial. It is my intent to elicit questions not answers to these situations.
Artists rarely, if ever pursue art for the money. Nonetheless, we all have bills and responsibilities and many aspiring artists are discouraged from pursuing art due to financial reasons. Any advice or thoughts you’d like to share with prospective artists?
There are many opportunities for artists to receive funds through local, state, federal and private entities. All of which are highly competitive so there are no guarantees. Artists need to be engaged within their community to not only produce art but be an advocate for arts funding.
Through this engagement one can find out more and more about opportunities that exist for funding of projects and materials. I have found the path of combining a career as an artist and a museum professional to have great synergy and allow me sustain myself. Looking for career paths that can be synergistic with being a practicing artist can be helpful.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
My work can be seen at: www.markosterman.weebly.com
Contact Info:
- Website: www.markosterman.weebly.com
- Email: osterman.mark@gmail.com
- Instagram: @mark_osterman
Image Credit:
Mark Osterman
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