Herman Maril
American, 1908 - 1986
"The sources of my work have been a response to nature and the world around me," Herman Maril once said. "I am interested in the language of paint, and my ideas must be expressed in terms of space concept on the plane of the canvas. I want my paintings to have an organic 'oneness' which should be the result of a constantly growing understanding and feeling for the lyricism possible in the plastic units of the picture struggle."
Known for the lyrical simplicity and peaceful harmony of his paintings, Herman Maril was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1908 and received his early training at the Maryland Institute of Fine Arts. He spent much of his time painting on Cape Cod, where he was discovered by Duncan Phillips, founder of the Phillips Collection, which led to exhibitions in New York City. Because of that exposure, he was selected as a WPA artist during the Depression, and was commissioned to paint murals in the post offices of Scranton, Pennsylvania and Alta Vista, Virginia. Maril was a teacher-painter at the University of Maryland for more than 31 years. Examples of his work are in the collections of The Smithsonian American Art Museum as well as National Portrait Gallery and The Phillips Collection, all in Washington D.C., as well as numerous national and international museums including The Whitney Museum and The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Known for the lyrical simplicity and peaceful harmony of his paintings, Herman Maril was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1908 and received his early training at the Maryland Institute of Fine Arts. He spent much of his time painting on Cape Cod, where he was discovered by Duncan Phillips, founder of the Phillips Collection, which led to exhibitions in New York City. Because of that exposure, he was selected as a WPA artist during the Depression, and was commissioned to paint murals in the post offices of Scranton, Pennsylvania and Alta Vista, Virginia. Maril was a teacher-painter at the University of Maryland for more than 31 years. Examples of his work are in the collections of The Smithsonian American Art Museum as well as National Portrait Gallery and The Phillips Collection, all in Washington D.C., as well as numerous national and international museums including The Whitney Museum and The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
