Mark Norseth began painting at age 11, working in watercolor along the coast of Washington state under the guidance of Charles Mulvey. After art school and some brief work as an illustrator in the Pacific Northwest, Norseth moved to New York City to continue his study of painting. During this time, Mark supported himself as a freelance illustrator with the help of painter Craig Srebnik in the mid-1980s. This period lasted over a decade, and found Mark scouring the museums and galleries of New York City to study the great painters and paintings present there.

Further study at the National Academy of Design, New York Academy of Figurative Art, and the Art Student’s League provided a solid technical base for Mark’s blossoming career. Mark also considers himself fortunate to have received instruction from James Childs, Curtis Hanson, and Hilary Holmes, all former students of R.H. Ives Gammell of Boston.

“It was in New York that I finally discovered the painters that truly knocked me out. Two exhibitions, in particular, the John Singer Sargent exhibition at the Whitney and Joaquin Sorolla at the IBM gallery, pushed me over the top. Of course, there have been other influences, but I’ve never done a painting, to this day, that wasn’t somehow indebted to what I saw in those two painters.”

Mark Norseth moved with his family to Oahu, Hawaii, and in 1998 began painting full time. He is confident and fluent in watercolor, pastel, and oil painting and has won awards in regional and national exhibitions in all three mediums.

Exhibitions have included the Adirondack Exhibition of American Watercolors, Academic Artists Association, The Pastel Society of America, The Hudson Valley Art Association, Hawaii Watercolor Society, and many others. In addition, mark’s oil paintings, watercolors, and pastels are highly-valued in collections worldwide.