Artwork copyright Marc Wenet. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2017.

All Night Praying in the New Moon Temple, 1990

Marc Wenet
American (born 1955)

Location: Green Hill School, Chehalis

About the Artwork

All Night Praying in the New Moon Temple is part of artist Marc Wenet's body of mixed-media artworks that explore the concept of darkness. He notes, "The subject in this piece is a dreamer. He spends his time in darkness suspended in a void. It is the time of the new moon, the blackest of nights, when only the stars sprinkle the sky with light… He is supported by the backs of two chairs yet the legs of the chairs have seemed to evaporate into the darkness. Any chance of feeling grounded has been removed from the environment. The only source of strength left to the dreamer must come from within. He prays for the illumination of his own inner light." Wenet composed this piece simultaneously with others in the series, responding to materials and allowing the artworks to "open a dialogue with each other."

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Department of Children, Youth, and Families.

About the Artist

Artist Marc Wenet creates assemblage paintings that combine and layer found objects and various materials in abstract and symbolic compositions. He notes that "Unconscious feeling and thought are a strong basis for my artwork. My images and constructions come about with little or no planning beforehand."
Born in Chicago, Illinois, Wenet earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago Circle in 1978. He has lived in Seattle since 1980.