Joseph Maruska provides the viewer with endless room to interpret and perceive meaning. His paintings leave room for the imagination to grow. Maruska’s strong forms and graceful landscapes take shape in an earthen palette of golden ochres, velvety browns and an array of blues that often translate into cascading, flowing bodies of water or a fragment of atmospheric sky. His unique style of abstraction begins by covering panels with a thick emulsion of modeling paste giving the effect of a subtle, three-dimensional profile. Maruska then returns to the surface, laying down rich color over the masses and shapes, using the shadows and protrusions as guidelines in which to lay the paint onto the surface. Finally, he introduces his characteristic luster to the work. Maruska has a keen awareness not only of what he visualizes, but also of what the viewer might experience. He deliberately organizes the luscious abstract fields of color, giving root to landscape, sky and water. His works resonate with the public and are widely collected.