40.5 × 75 in
 in
 cm
$12,000
This oil on canvas showcases Vicky Marshall’s skill as an expressionist artist and affirms her acclaim as one of Vancouver’s most recognized painters and member of the lauded “Young Romantics.” Thick, textural brushstrokes lend an air of joy and movement to the piece, in spite of the rather sinister expressions on the faces of the newlyweds. The bride is adorned in a vivid white gown that vanishes into the head tablecloth, her bold red hair piled and pinned. She and her groom stand before the three-tiered wedding cake, hands clasped as she wields a large knife in preparation for the timeless tradition of cutting the cake. Behind the questionably happy couple, guests prepare to raise their cocktail glasses in a toast. Marshall embraces an off-kilter perspective that leaves the viewer somewhat unsteady, adding to the chaotic nature of the painting. The figures seem almost to slide into the left corner of the artwork, as dessert plates threaten to slide from the table in the opposite direction. As a result, this dramatic work engages the eye immediately, encouraging it to explore the entirety of the canvas with eager anticipation.
| Medium | Painting |
| Signature | Signed |
| Frame | Unframed |
| Condition | excellent |
| Seller | Private |
| Location | Victoria, Canada |
| Provenance | Diane Farris Gallery; Private Collection, Victoria, Canada. |
Known for her distinctive expressionistic technique and subjects drawn from everyday life, Vicky Marshall is one of Vancouver’s most recognized painters and member of the “Young Romantics” as presented in an acclaimed exhibition held at the Vancouver Art Gallery in 1985. Born in 1952 in Sheffield, England, Marshall immigrated to Canada in 1966 and completed her Bachelor degree at Emily Carr University in 1979. On graduating from art school, Marshall moved to Vancouver’s Gastown area which then had warehouse studio space available for artists. She continued to live and work there for many years, and that experience, which included dynamic interaction with other artists, greatly benefitted her formative working years.
For the first years of her career, Marshall’s work addressed the figure, and her imagination was fed by the colourful local inhabitants of the area. During the mid-80s, her parents moved to BC’s Kootenay region, where Marshall discovered a love of nature and began to paint landscape, both plein air and on a larger scale in the various shacks and cabins she could find to inhabit. During a 2002 visit to her parents, who had moved to Gibsons, she and her husband fell in love with the Sunshine Coast, and in 2004, they moved there permanently to live and work.Â
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