Marcus Jansen

Marcus Jansen has been a professional painter for almost 30 years. It has been his passion ever since his first painting was selected to be publicly exhibited in a student school competition in New York City when he was just 6 years old. From there he discovered that painting was a means of communication, not just an expressive outlet. Coming from a working-class family, he spent the majority of his life traveling and living around different parts of the world before, after and during military service. His father moved the family to Germany, where Marcus was educated. Born in Manhattan in 1968, he is rooted in the Bronx, New York, where he first resided and later started school in Queens. Served in the U.S. military for eight years, including the first Gulf War conflict, became the catalyst that was to transform his life from a soldier to a professional painter. Returning to NYC and he started selling work on lower Manhattan street corners in 1999. His paintings have become a social critique and reflection of his feelings on humanity and injustice. Although they may not be seen as autobiographical per se, you can find his observations and emotions about his surroundings directly or indirectly in his work. Marcus refers to himself as an observer who expresses what he senses and feels about things through his personals. His works are often seen as visual protests; they vary intentionally and resist conforming in a painterly and historical manner. His attempt is to create something he hasn't seen before.