The Paintings of Artist Marianne Kuhn-Huntington Offer Evocative Images of Ireland

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Parent Category: Travel Info

Category: Travel Feature

Published on Tuesday, 20 February 2024 15:14

Written by Brad Balfour

Cliffs of Moher

When I discovered Marianne Kuhn-Huntington's artwork, I was first drawn to her ethereal fashion images. But as I clicked onward through further exploration of her website, I discovered a plethora of impressionistic images of Ireland. My first thought was what a wonderful way to take a trip, real or imagined. 

Her work has been presented throughout New York City in such places as The Salmagundi Club, Tribeca's Bond Gallery, The Grand Lodge on 23rd Street, Adrienne's on Stone Street, Broad Street's Bitcoin Center and her eponymous studio/gallery at 10 Hanover Square in FiDi.

Kuhn-Huntington's paintings are mostly studies of landscapes based on her travels worldwide. In addition, she paints portraits of people and pets, fashion editorials in water color and oils, plus abstracts based on urban decay and plastics in the ocean. She has created collections of paintings extrapolating images from literature such as James Joyce's "Ulysses" and T.S. Elliot's "The Waste Land."

Born in New Rochelle, New York, the daughter of award-winning artist Gunther Kuhn and accomplished artist Eileen Kuhn, the skilled imagist is proudly following in her parents' footsteps living as a designer/artist in New York City. The sixth-born of a family of 10, Kuhn-Huntington decided, at a young age, to be both a fashion designer and an artist. She followed her dreams and completed a BFA at FIT in NYC, which is where she also fell in love with modern literature. 

As Marianne wrote in an email, “I hope this is a good start. There's always so much to say. In a nutshell, I came from a very difficult childhood (in so many ways) and struggled through with persistence, keeping up with painting throughout the years on and off, sometimes to keep the sanity. I continue to soldier on in the challenging and exciting life of living in NYC, but you get it.”

Living in NYC's UES as an accomplished designer and artist, she is constantly inspired by her travels near and far. Her goal is to create impressionistic oil painting and water colors of images she had collected from her experiences.  

For more info, go to: www.mhunt.net or call 917-855-3520 for an appointment.

Q: Has making visual art always been something you did since you were a kid? 

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: Yes, My parents were both artists so I was inspired at an early age. My father, who was from Berlin, was a full time fine artist who presented his work many times and was also president of the New Rochelle Art Association. My mother was a full-time mother of 10 and painted for the catholic school we attended, St Gabriels and Blessed Sacrament in New Rochelle NY. She painted large and small projects for the school and the church, from stage sets for school plays to promotional posters for events. I was lucky and grateful to inherit their talents. 

Q: Since you’re also a fashion designer, what came first, the painting or the clothing design?  

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: Pencil sketching first, however, as I became more interested in fashion as an adolescent, I realized I could use my talents to design clothing. About 15 years ago, I felt the need to paint more seriously to express my talent, so I started doing a different series every month in both watercolor and oil. Each collection was a departure from the previous to exercise the artistic muscles of painting in general. It’s very important that I continue to paint even though I have a full-time job. My son Adam was an inspiration to me as well; there's a story behind that. Presently I do more water colors as it takes up less space in my NYC apartment. 

Q: Where did you go to school?  

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: I went to FIT from 1985-87 for my associates degree and then, from 1996-'98, for my BFA in Fashion Design. 

Q: When did you first become aware of your Irish heritage? 

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: When I was a child, my maternal great grandparents were from Ireland and we talked about them occasionally with my grandmother, but I always wanted to know more. There wasn't a lot of information in writing so I had to do a lot of research. My brother Andrew is presently digging deeper and has found a connection in Kildare with my great grandfather.

Q: Knowing that you’re part of this historical experience, one that includes the many ups and downs of Irish history, how did that affect you?

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: Profoundly, I became very interested in Irish history in general and of course learning more about my own family past. I spend a lot of time researching and learning about Ireland, mostly through the writings of James Joyce. I went to Ireland to visit the area of where my family is from. 

Q: What counties is your family or families from?  

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: My great grandmother, Bridget Condron is from Mullingar in Westmeath. My Great grandfather, Patrick Condron is possibly from County Offaly, but I'm not sure what town. There's also a County Kildare connection as I mentioned so we still have to sort this out.

Q: When did you first visit Ireland and what were your favorite places?

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: I first visited Ireland in 2016 and mostly stayed in Dublin for Bloomsday. It was a very Odyssean trip. Then I went back in 2022 for the Bloomsday centennial of "Ulysses," traveling with members of my James Joyce reading group, and we read the provocative part of Nausicaa on the stage in front of Davy Byrnes. It was the ideal way to spend Bloomsday. Then I traveled to Mullingar to see where my great grandmother was from. I then went to Tullamore as I was told by people in Mullingar that it was a town that had close connections to Mullangar. It was a direct route and people traveled back and forth often. I made it up in my head that my grandparents met traveling back and forth from Mullingar to Tullamore or maybe at an Irish dance, but we're still researching that. Some of the paintings are from photos I got from the Irish Consulate's tourism office; that was before I went to Ireland. I plan on visiting more places in Ireland with my family next year.

Q: What led to your Joyce obsession?

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: Whilst studying for my BFA at FIT, I took a Modern Literature class as an elective.  It was difficult but I stuck with it; at the end of the semester, I looked up from the readings and observed more than half the class had dropped out. After that, I couldn't get Joyce and other writers out of my head, I literally couldn't get enough of modern literature. I went down a rabbit hole and I'm still falling. I am reading “Ulysses” for the fourth time and have read all of his work including "Finnegans Wake," which is unreadable without a guide. What I love most is the community that comes with literature; it's a very rich world to live in. 

Q: Can you fill in more details about the groups you belong to that are related to all this?

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: For 10 years, I've been part of a James Joyce reading group. We used to meet in person at the Irish Consulate before COVID-19. Now, we meet on Zoom every week to read all of Joyce's work, though it's mostly been "Ulysses." In addition, I have been a member of the James Joyce Society for at least two years, there are many talks and Joyce-related discussions of his life and literary works, which keeps me sated, almost. 

In addition, I have been a member of the International T.S. Eliot Society since 2008. I decided to join the society when I was at a grave turning point in my life and wanted to do something very important to me. I had a heart infection and needed surgery otherwise I would be dead in six months. At that point, I chose to live the rest of my life studying literature as an independent scholar. Two weeks after my surgery, I was on a flight to St. Louis to attend my first of many T.S. Eliot Society conferences. In addition to Joyce and Eliot, I've also studied Gertrude Stein, Virginia Woolf, Joseph Conrad, and many more. 

Q: What do you plan on doing when you return to Ireland?

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington:  I plan to go to all the places I have painted but have not been to yet, Such as the West Coast, Tipperary, and Rock of Dunamase.  I also will go back to where my great grandparents were from, Westmeath and Offaly. And, I believe we have some heritage in Kildare but it needs more research. If time permits, I will visit a friend in Cork. 

Q: And given that your work evokes a kind of romantic image of Ireland as it does with your other subjects, what evokes romance for you?

Marianne Kuhn-Huntington: That's a tough question, I suppose the seaside and water in general, as well as boat rides, small or large. Flowers are great. There's also museums, culture, literature, music and intimate gatherings in dark and quiet restaurants with great wine.

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