MARIANNE SMITH DALTON

Fine Artist * Writer * Curator

My obsession with anthropological histories, early film and vintage photography continually drive my vision as a fine artist in photography and painting. My curatorial work is also driven by these interests.

The silver lining during the Covid Pandemic is that I began writing non-fiction short stories and memoirs witnessed through a prism of certainty and surprise amid a maze of real emotions. I’m excited to say my writing continues and is being published. 

I also occasionally work as the Curator/Director of the Sarah G. Austin Foundation (Based in Norwalk, CT). Committed to the creative arts legacy of the late Sarah G. Austin through educational exhibitions and loans of the late artist’s work. In 2021, I was thrilled to make a Gift Acquisition of Austin’s large piece, Picasso/Braque, comprising four art boxes, to Addison Gallery of American Art/Andover MA. New exhibition (and sale) opportunities are in the works for Late Summer/Fall 2023. Please follow the Foundation’s Facebook page, or me at mdaltonart on Instagram, for more information, future exhibitions and updates. The Sarah G. Austin Foundation.

A little bit of background:

My desire to use my expertise with hands-on materials used as an artist led me to pursue other ways to utilize these skills. Consequently, I worked in healthcare as an orthotist for almost ten years in Philadelphia. (Louis Yellin, Inc.) There I specialized in the custom fabrication of corrective bracing for children and adults. My main concentration was working with children with scoliosis and other congenital issues. Those personal relationships developed during that experience; working with individuals often facing debilitating circumstances who were so full of gratitude and hope continually inspires me today.

I am a founding member of the original art-house, Redhouse in Syracuse, New York. I served as both gallery director and curator for the first several years of its inception. Responsible for the overall artistic vision and leadership of visual fine art culminating in dozens of exhibitions including installation, painting, photography, sculpture, and mixed media from local and nationally recognized artists. It was a rewarding experience, and it ultimately reaffirmed my desire to focus on my own creative work.

 

PUBLISHED WRITING

*Creative Nonfiction –  The Voodoo Shell  The Write Launch (October 2023)

*Creative Nonfiction – Chasing Blue Butterflies  – The Write Launch (May 2023)

*Creative Nonfiction My Supposed Amish Life  – The Write Launch (Oct. 2022)

*Creative Nonfiction – A Punk Like Me  – The Write Launch (2022)

*Creative Nonfiction – Angel in Feathery Red – Grande Dame Literary Journal (2022)

 

PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITIONS/AWARDS

*International Juried Exhibition/Center for Photographic Arts, Carmel, CA “Hidden” (12/23 – 01/24) Juror: Shana Lopes/Assistant Curator of Photography/SFMOMA

*International Juried Exhibition/Fotonostrum Gallery, Barcelona, Spain (2024) 21st Edition Julia Margaret Cameron Award/ Storytelling Series of 6 images: “Chasing Time” Honorable Mention Award (Nov. 2023)

*International Juried Online Photography/LifeFramer  “The Human Body” The Hypnotist (2023) Honorable Mention Award, Juror: Li Hui

*International Juried Exhibition/The Galleries at Moore, Philadelphia, PA/”Splash” (2022) Juror: Morgan Hobbs/Gross McLeaf Gallery

*International Juried Exhibition/Family, The SE Center for Photography, Greenville, SC. “Billy Holding Dad” Juror: Aline Smithson  (2020)

*International Juried Exhibition/The Abandoned Landscape, The SE Center for Photography, Greenville, SC. -“Sunday Best” Juror: Jennifer Schlesinger, Artist/Gallerist/Educator (2019)

*Juried Group Exhibition/ Series of 3 images: Once Upon a Sofa, The Galleries at Moore, Phila. PA. Juror: Molly Dougherty, Executive Director/Pennsylvania School for the Deaf (2018)

*Juried Group Exhibition/Camera USA® The Naples Art Association, Naples FL Jurors: Christopher Jones, Associate Curator of Photography at The Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, FL; Mark Sloan, Director and Chief Curator of the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art at the College of Charleston in SC; and Paula Tognarelli, Executive Director and Curator of the Griffin Museum of Photography in Winchester, MA. (2018) 

*International Juried Exhibition/Healing Nature: Human Vision, Art & the Environment, Cape Cod Museum of Art, Dennis, MA “Totem” Juror: Mark Adams, Cartographer/Geologist (2018)

*International Juried Exhibition/Water – The Center for Fine Art Photography, Fort Collins, CO, Juror’s Honorable Mention Award Juror: Jennifer Murray, Executive Director, Filter Photo (2018) 

*International Photography Awards (2018)  Honorable Mention/Fine Art Photography, Series: Stalking Eden

*International Juried Exhibition/The Portrait, SXSE Gallery, Molena, GA (2017) Juror: Elizabeth Avedon, Writer, Photographer & Faculty, School of Visual Arts, NYC.

*Juried Group Exhibition/Contemplation of a Dystopian FutureThe Galleries at Moore, Best in Show Award, Philadelphia, PA (2017) Jurors/Curator: Robert Chaney, Director of Curatorial Affairs, Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia

*Invitational Exhibition Assembling Wonder, Cazenovia Museum Mixed Media Curiosity Box, Cazenovia, NY (2016)

*International Photography Awards (2016) Honorable Mention/Fine Art Photography, Family/Marriage Equality

*International Photography Awards (2016) Honorable Mention/Fine Art Photography, Photograph: Family/Childhood Remember When

*Juried Group Exhibition/Made in NY, Schweinfurth Art Center, Auburn, NY (2016) Jurors: Ann Clarke, Dean School of Visual & Performing Arts, Syr. University & John Von Bergen, Sculptor

*The Photo Review/Competition: The Body Issue/(2015) Inclusion in the Online Web Gallery, Editor, Stephen Perloff

*International Photography Awards (2015) Honorable Mention/Fine Art Photography, Series: Color Blind

*International Photography Awards (2015) Honorable Mention/Fine Art Photography, Portrait: George

*International Photography Awards (2015) Honorable Mention/Fine Art Photography, Portrait: Never Too Rich, Never Too Thin

*International Juried Exhibition/Photography: Mirror, Mirror, Darkroom Gallery, Essex, VT (2014) Juror – Amy Arbus, Photographer, Editor.

*International Juried Exhibition/Photography: Juxtapose, Darkroom Gallery, Essex, VT (2014) Juror – Kyohei Abe, Detroit Center for Contemporary Photography

*International Photography Awards (2013) Honorable Mention/Fine Art Photography,  Series: Melancholy and Perfection

 

PUBLISHED PHOTOGRAPHY

*Juried Magazine/The Brooklyn Review – Flower Whispering  From the series, “Metamorphosis” –  (2022)

*Juried Magazine/Print Publication/SHOTS MagazineSelf Portraits Issue  – Photograph “Hidden” (2022) 

*Juried Book/Print Publication/Photography – Stone Canoe; Issue Number 14  (February 2020) Photograph: “The Hypnotist”

* Juried Book/Print Publication/Photographer’s Forum Magazine, Photograph, “Cries and Whispers” in Book: Best of Photography 2014.

 

INSTALLATION

*Installation: Cloud Cover, Redhouse Arts Center Rooftop, Syracuse, NY (2010 – 2018)

*Public Art Performance: Cloud Cover, Redhouse Arts Center Rooftop, Syracuse, NY (2014)

 

PAINTING

*Group Show/Painting: The Language of Trees, Redhouse Arts Center, Syracuse, NY (2013)

*Group Show/Painting: Mentors: 4 Influential Women Artists, Tech Garden, Syracuse, NY (2013)

*Juried Group Exhibition/Photography: Fertile Imagination, Schweinfurth Art Center, Auburn, NY (2013) Juror: Jerome Witkin, American Figurative Painter.

*Juried Group Exhibition/Painting: Artists of Madison County, Stone Quarry Art Park, Cazenovia, NY (2011)

*Solo Exhibition/Painting: How Does Your Garden Grow? Redhouse Arts Center, Syracuse, NY (2010)

 

EDUCATION

  • Master of Fine Art, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL.
  • Bachelor of Fine Art, Moore College of Art & Design, Philadelphia, PA.
  • Bachelor of Science, Moore College of Art & Design, Philadelphia, PA.

 

World Wide Copyright Agreement:
You agree to the following copyright agreement by viewing this site. No Images on this site are within the public domain. The use of any image or text as the basis for another photographic concept, illustration, or other visual work is a violation of copyright.  All content on this site is the intellectual property of Marianne Smith Dalton/Marianne Światłowicz Dalton/mdaltonart/mdaltonart.com and is protected under the United States and International Copyright Laws. Written permission is required for the use of any image or text, please feel free to inquire through DM on Instagram. Thank you for visiting!