Marie Lannoo: Whatever Happened to the Goebbels’ Family?

Marie Lannoo was born in Delhi, Ontario and now lives in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. She has developed a reputation as an outstanding abstract painter whose work explores ideas of surface, reflection, depth, and colour.  Her painting Whatever Happened to the Goebbels’ Family? was one of her last works in a series in which she explored figurative imagery and narrative. She is a prolific artist who exhibits locally, nationally, and internationally and her paintings are represented in many collections. 

Lannoo’s interest in investigating abstract art practices and exploring colour began in 1984, when she established her full-time career as an artist. Since that time, she has examined a variety of themes and processes. Her abstract work explores the magical effect of layering colour to produce a variety of colours and create the illusion of depth. As the viewer interacts with the surface of the painting and is reflected in it, the surfaces change and provide totally new or unexpected reflections of colour. What appears simple on the surface becomes more complex as you spend time experiencing her work. 

Lannoo is always open to her environment and finds inspiration in everything she sees and experiences. She is captivated by a variety of stimuli such as magazine articles, books on string theory, the Aurora Borealis and popular television programs. The vast open spaces of the prairie landscape and the clarity of light also have influenced Lannoo and her work. Some of her greatest artistic influences are Otto Rogers, Eli Bornstein, Mark Rothko and Zaha Hadid, as well as the artists of the “Regina Five”: Arthur MacKay, Kenneth Lochhead, Ted Godwin, Ronald Bloore and Douglas Morton.