April 2011

North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh, NC, Features Works by Micah Mullen

The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh, NC, will present the exhibit, Carolina Mosaics: A Painter’s View, featuring works by Raleigh artist, Micah Mullen, on view in the Nature Art Gallery from Apr. 1 through May 1, 2011. A reception will be held on Apr. 1, from 6:30-8:30pm.

The term “mosaics” in the show title describes the appearance of Mullen’s canvases, which reflect his perspective of the landscapes he paints. These detailed landscapes are achieved by creating a complicated background of hundreds of grids of varying colors that loosely establish the composition. He then adds details to different segments of the painting over a period of time.

“For example, a typical landscape composition might have 20 different trees,” Mullen says. “Painting all the trees during the same session will tend to create too many similarities and thus a boring composition. Patience and time allows my paintings to reflect my varying emotions and moods and in a strange way creates a sense of balance and harmony in what are sometimes very detailed and confusing compositions.”

A relative newcomer to the local arts scene, Mullen quickly established himself by gaining entry to local juried exhibitions and winning awards. He started with a couple of group shows in 2008 and then rapidly increased his presence, participating in 14 shows in nine different venues in 2009. His work has been shown at the Durham Art Guild and Artspace, as well as annual shows sponsored by the Cary Fine Arts League and the Raleigh Fine Arts Society.

In 2010, he had solo shows at the Capital Bank Plaza and Visual Art Exchange in Raleigh; Horace Williams House in Chapel Hill, NC; and Page Walker Arts Center in Cary, NC, among others. He was awarded First Place in a show at the Rocky Mount Arts Center and the Visual Art Exchange’s 3rd Annual SCOPE NC Landscape Show. Mullen also exhibited in the Mid-Atlantic Art Exhibition in Norfolk, VA, and the National Society of Painters in Casein and Acrylic in New York in 2010.

Mullen’s art career began in his Dad’s art studio where he had a daily immersion in art. His education continued with visits to art museums during summer vacations. Currently, Mullen is a Marketing Director for Jerry’s Artarama and also does live painting demonstrations and creates instructional videos for them. This experience has vastly increased his knowledge of art techniques as they relate to tools and materials. “Applying this knowledge to my art gives me hundreds of ideas that would probably not be taught through traditional art courses.”

The Nature Art Gallery is located on the top floor of the Museum Store. All exhibited art is for sale.

The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, documents and interprets natural history of the state of North Carolina through exhibits, research, collections, publications and educational programming. The Museum is an agency of the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Dee Freeman, Secretary.

For further information check our NC Institutional Gallery listings, contact the store at 919/733-7450, ext. 369 or visit (www.naturalsciences.org).

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