Each painting registers specific light, movement, space and texture in the surface of paint. Surfaces are built up as a deliberate response to the textures observed. In Scotland it is tree, rock, snow or water. In India it is the accumulation of history and human life. In both, Marcus is after the sense that these places are timeless.
In the early stages of his career, Marcus initially made his name as a portrait painter. He returned to the UK in 1996 from a rigorous five year training in classical oil painting in Spain, very much in the vivid Spanish ‘Alla Prima’ style and within two years, he exhibited with the Royal Society of Portrait Painters.
Marcus first travelled to India in 2000 and this was the start of an intense fascination with the country which became the driving inspiration behind his work. Much of the work from India focused on the Marwari horse.
Since 2018 a new parallel body of abstract work began to emerge based around the religious and spiritual ceremonies in India culminating in a solo exhibition of these paintings and sculptures at the Osborne Studio Gallery in 2026.
Looking ahead Marcus is returning to the theme of the horse with a focus on the world of flat racing and also new work inspired by travels to Morocco.