MARK VALLEN

Born in Los Angeles California in 1953, Vallen has been creating images for as long as he can remember. By 1971, at the age of 17, he had already published cartoons in the Los Angeles Free Press newspaper. In the same year he published his first street poster,


a pre-Watergate artwork titled, Evict Nixon! He studied art at the prestigious Otis Parsons Art Institute of Los Angeles, where he was influenced by the great African American social realist, Charles White. But despite his schooling the artist considers himself to be largely self taught.
He forged a style shaped not so much by how others painted, but what they painted. Vallen has a firm commitment to figurative realism, and he's derived inspiration from the rich heritage of artists working as social critics and documentarians. His influences range from Goya and Daumier, to the German Expressionists and Mexican Muralists.

 

Artwork by Mark Vallen © All rights reserved

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http://www.markvallen.com/