Acrylic and Watercolor painting, greeting cards
Marcy Dronen combines her love of music, animals and travel into her artistic endeavors.
She has enjoyed creating art her whole life. As a young girl, she remembers being blown away at her grandmother's ability to draw a horse on a brown grocery bag. It was like magic!
Marcy grew up on a farm between Sharon and Finley, North Dakota and is a lifetime resident of North Dakota. She graduated from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota with degrees in music and art. In 2005, Marcy earned a Masters of Science degree from Minnesota State University, Moorhead in Curriculum and Instruction. She taught band and art in the Fargo Public Schools from 1998 to 2018. Before retiring in 2018, the last twelve years of her teaching career were devoted to teaching art to students in kindergarten through fifth grade.
Marcy is a member and past president of the Red River Watercolor Society and is a member/secretary of the Fargo Moorhead Visual Artists. She enjoys taking art workshops and recently experienced a very special one with her hero, watercolor artist Charles Reid in Vermont.
In addition to art, Marcy stays busy playing her French horn with the Lake Agassiz Concert Band, the FM Brass quintet and Horns of the North. Marcy makes art with joy and when not making art or music, she waits on her very spoiled cat, Maxwell.
Awards, Shows and Workshops
2021, Sanford Roger Maris Gallery, September/October Art Exhibition
2021, Essentia Health Clinic, July/August Art Exhibition
2020: Bismarck Art Galleries Association - September Art Exhibition
2019: Painting "Laura Reads" selected for installation on downtown Fargo Park Bench located on Broadway and 4th Ave North
2019: Pekin Art Show, Watercolor Third Place Award
2018, 2019, 2020 FMVA Studio Crawl: Participant - Juried process to participate
2018-2021: Secretary of Fargo Moorhead Visual Artists 2018-2021
FMVA Big Exhibition: participated - several years.
FMVA Little Exhibition: participated - several years
FMVA Educators Exhibition: participated - several years
2015: Show at McCulley Eyewear in Fargo
2015: Plains Art Museum Gala Silent Auction
2013: Pekin Art Show, Acrylic Honorable Mention Award
2012: Dickinson State University Invitational Art Gallery Exhibition,
“January Blues” (27 nationally and regionally known artists)
2011- Current: Gallery4, Fargo - Member
2011: Dickinson State University - Solo Art show
2011: Dickinson State University: Taught watercolor workshop in conjunction with the art show
2011: Dickinson Student Newspaper, “The Hawk.” Article about my art show - January 28, 2011
2010: Plains Art Museum - Taught class based on the Beatles White Album
2007: RRWS Member Exhibition, Hjemkomst Center
2003: Art show at State Bank of Fargo
2002: Red River Watercolor Society National Show - Excellence Award
2002: Heritage Hjemkomst Interpretive Center, Taste of Valley Art Show,
2001: Hawley Art Show Professional Merit Award
2000-2018 - Art Teacher in Fargo Public Schools
1999: Hawley Art Show Professional Merit Award
1998: Hawley Art Show 2nd Place Award, Amateur Class
1998: Dakota Clinic Exhibition: RRWS Art in the Atrium - Participant
1998: Solo Show at Dakota Clinic - Art in the Atrium
1998: Olivet Lutheran Church: Exhibition
1996: Logo design was selected for Sharon, ND Centennial Logo
1990 - current: Member and Past President Red River Watercolor Society
1983: State Hospital Art Show, Jamestown, ND Award
Learn more about Marcy at: www.marcydronenstudio.com
She has enjoyed creating art her whole life. As a young girl, she remembers being blown away at her grandmother's ability to draw a horse on a brown grocery bag. It was like magic!
Marcy grew up on a farm between Sharon and Finley, North Dakota and is a lifetime resident of North Dakota. She graduated from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota with degrees in music and art. In 2005, Marcy earned a Masters of Science degree from Minnesota State University, Moorhead in Curriculum and Instruction. She taught band and art in the Fargo Public Schools from 1998 to 2018. Before retiring in 2018, the last twelve years of her teaching career were devoted to teaching art to students in kindergarten through fifth grade.
Marcy is a member and past president of the Red River Watercolor Society and is a member/secretary of the Fargo Moorhead Visual Artists. She enjoys taking art workshops and recently experienced a very special one with her hero, watercolor artist Charles Reid in Vermont.
In addition to art, Marcy stays busy playing her French horn with the Lake Agassiz Concert Band, the FM Brass quintet and Horns of the North. Marcy makes art with joy and when not making art or music, she waits on her very spoiled cat, Maxwell.
Awards, Shows and Workshops
2021, Sanford Roger Maris Gallery, September/October Art Exhibition
2021, Essentia Health Clinic, July/August Art Exhibition
2020: Bismarck Art Galleries Association - September Art Exhibition
2019: Painting "Laura Reads" selected for installation on downtown Fargo Park Bench located on Broadway and 4th Ave North
2019: Pekin Art Show, Watercolor Third Place Award
2018, 2019, 2020 FMVA Studio Crawl: Participant - Juried process to participate
2018-2021: Secretary of Fargo Moorhead Visual Artists 2018-2021
FMVA Big Exhibition: participated - several years.
FMVA Little Exhibition: participated - several years
FMVA Educators Exhibition: participated - several years
2015: Show at McCulley Eyewear in Fargo
2015: Plains Art Museum Gala Silent Auction
2013: Pekin Art Show, Acrylic Honorable Mention Award
2012: Dickinson State University Invitational Art Gallery Exhibition,
“January Blues” (27 nationally and regionally known artists)
2011- Current: Gallery4, Fargo - Member
2011: Dickinson State University - Solo Art show
2011: Dickinson State University: Taught watercolor workshop in conjunction with the art show
2011: Dickinson Student Newspaper, “The Hawk.” Article about my art show - January 28, 2011
2010: Plains Art Museum - Taught class based on the Beatles White Album
2007: RRWS Member Exhibition, Hjemkomst Center
2003: Art show at State Bank of Fargo
2002: Red River Watercolor Society National Show - Excellence Award
2002: Heritage Hjemkomst Interpretive Center, Taste of Valley Art Show,
2001: Hawley Art Show Professional Merit Award
2000-2018 - Art Teacher in Fargo Public Schools
1999: Hawley Art Show Professional Merit Award
1998: Hawley Art Show 2nd Place Award, Amateur Class
1998: Dakota Clinic Exhibition: RRWS Art in the Atrium - Participant
1998: Solo Show at Dakota Clinic - Art in the Atrium
1998: Olivet Lutheran Church: Exhibition
1996: Logo design was selected for Sharon, ND Centennial Logo
1990 - current: Member and Past President Red River Watercolor Society
1983: State Hospital Art Show, Jamestown, ND Award
Learn more about Marcy at: www.marcydronenstudio.com
Bright Colors and Jaunty Compositions | Artist Feature
Fargo Monthly Magazine, July 2022, Brandi Malarkey
READ MORE of the article
“Don’t share this, people will think I’m weird,” Marcy Dronen laughs brightly as she displays two different sketches of a row of wishbones she saved from cooked chickens. The sketches are part of a “homework” assignment from a recent Zoom class she attended—doing three 5 minute sketches a day to help refocus her brain on her art.
“I love taking classes. You are often reminded of the things you know, and sometimes you learn something different.”
A retired teacher of art and music, it is no surprise that Marcy is a life-long learner. “In my classes I tried to keep things really loose. I have a few minor rules to an assignment, and then the sky is the limit! Everyone needs to have their own voice and develop something that is theirs. The one thing art teaches you most is that there are many answers and many approaches to the same question.”
Wise words spoken with enthusiasm. Talking with her hands as she becomes more animated, it is impossible not to be affected by Marcy’s obvious love for her subject. Her joyous demeaner is reflected in watercolor and acrylic paintings that use bright colors and jaunty compositions. Those paintings explore a wide range of subjects.
“Sometimes I feel like I am going in too many directions, and it is hard to focus. But each piece is something that I am excited about.”
That excitement is easy to see, especially in her most recent works. Inspired by a workshop with Charles Reid, and with the increased ability to travel that came with retirement, her most recent watercolors have traveled with her, catching the rhythm and movement of people in the community and street scenes ranging from Fargo to Florence.
“I love working in watercolor. There are so many surprises that can happen in the process that make it new and fun. Each painting is a series of small victories, and I love that spark of excitement when something is working well.”
Marcy stays active by interacting with other art lovers and enthusiasts at Gallery 4, an artist cooperative gallery in the heart of Downtown Fargo. “I work a couple days a month at the gallery and have the chance to visit with people from all across the country.” She has her original artworks framed and on display along with a variety of greeting cards for sale in the gallery gift shop. “People love to purchase art from local artists, because it that reminds them of their trip.”
Being able to create something that didn’t exist before, especially when it affects a viewer, is Marcy’s favorite part. Taking photos of anything that catches her imagination, Marcy turns those images into unique memories. Sometimes those memories are her own: featuring her music, her cats, or her daughter. A painting done from life of her daughter reading is featured on a bench on the 400 block of Broadway in downtown Fargo.
Sometimes those memories aren’t her own. An image of a barber college that catches the attention of the son of a former graduate. A painting of three white mailboxes that finds its new home with a family who has worked in the post office for years. Marcy’s relatable imagery often sparks emotions in others, which has a positive effect on her, in turn.
“I think it is part of why I am less self-critical than I used to be. I am more comfortable and confident in the result. You don’t always know when that is going to happen, but when a piece speaks to the right person, it’s very dear.”
No matter who the memory belongs to, the love and joy Marcy exhibits is infused into each one.
#painter #galleryartist #NorthDakotaArtist
Fargo Monthly Magazine, July 2022, Brandi Malarkey
READ MORE of the article
“Don’t share this, people will think I’m weird,” Marcy Dronen laughs brightly as she displays two different sketches of a row of wishbones she saved from cooked chickens. The sketches are part of a “homework” assignment from a recent Zoom class she attended—doing three 5 minute sketches a day to help refocus her brain on her art.
“I love taking classes. You are often reminded of the things you know, and sometimes you learn something different.”
A retired teacher of art and music, it is no surprise that Marcy is a life-long learner. “In my classes I tried to keep things really loose. I have a few minor rules to an assignment, and then the sky is the limit! Everyone needs to have their own voice and develop something that is theirs. The one thing art teaches you most is that there are many answers and many approaches to the same question.”
Wise words spoken with enthusiasm. Talking with her hands as she becomes more animated, it is impossible not to be affected by Marcy’s obvious love for her subject. Her joyous demeaner is reflected in watercolor and acrylic paintings that use bright colors and jaunty compositions. Those paintings explore a wide range of subjects.
“Sometimes I feel like I am going in too many directions, and it is hard to focus. But each piece is something that I am excited about.”
That excitement is easy to see, especially in her most recent works. Inspired by a workshop with Charles Reid, and with the increased ability to travel that came with retirement, her most recent watercolors have traveled with her, catching the rhythm and movement of people in the community and street scenes ranging from Fargo to Florence.
“I love working in watercolor. There are so many surprises that can happen in the process that make it new and fun. Each painting is a series of small victories, and I love that spark of excitement when something is working well.”
Marcy stays active by interacting with other art lovers and enthusiasts at Gallery 4, an artist cooperative gallery in the heart of Downtown Fargo. “I work a couple days a month at the gallery and have the chance to visit with people from all across the country.” She has her original artworks framed and on display along with a variety of greeting cards for sale in the gallery gift shop. “People love to purchase art from local artists, because it that reminds them of their trip.”
Being able to create something that didn’t exist before, especially when it affects a viewer, is Marcy’s favorite part. Taking photos of anything that catches her imagination, Marcy turns those images into unique memories. Sometimes those memories are her own: featuring her music, her cats, or her daughter. A painting done from life of her daughter reading is featured on a bench on the 400 block of Broadway in downtown Fargo.
Sometimes those memories aren’t her own. An image of a barber college that catches the attention of the son of a former graduate. A painting of three white mailboxes that finds its new home with a family who has worked in the post office for years. Marcy’s relatable imagery often sparks emotions in others, which has a positive effect on her, in turn.
“I think it is part of why I am less self-critical than I used to be. I am more comfortable and confident in the result. You don’t always know when that is going to happen, but when a piece speaks to the right person, it’s very dear.”
No matter who the memory belongs to, the love and joy Marcy exhibits is infused into each one.
#painter #galleryartist #NorthDakotaArtist
Show on Kindness
- Kindness comes in many different sizes, shapes and forms. Sometimes it’s as simple as handing out a water bottle to runners or the inspiration from a quote.. Gallery4’s "Show of Kindness" exhibit asks the artists what kindness means to them.
- ✿ Here's Gallery4 artist Marcy Dronen and her original painting, "Mother Theresa’s Quote About Love.”
