Maro Gorky (American/Armenian b.1943)

Maro Gorky is the daughter of the celebrated abstract Armenian artist Arshile Gorky. Born in New York, she studied at the Slade with Frank Auerbach. She now resides in Tuscany with her husband the artist and writer Matthew Spender. Their life was used as the fictional backdrop for Bernardo Bertolucci's 1996 film Stealing Beauty, with Gorky portraryed by Sinénd Cusack. In the present work, the vibrancy of the Tuscan countryside is demonstrated by the bold use of colour. Gorky is a keen gardener, spending many hours tending to the land around her home.