Interview with: Marcelle Mansour
November 2025
Welcome Marcelle Mansour, first tell us about your background and why you chose to pursue this career.
Do you remember the first artwork that stirred something inside you?
Thank you for the opportunity. Based in Sydney, I am a multidisciplinary fine artist with MFA, MSA, and BA degrees, as well as a bilingual author, poet, Art Ambassador, and Peace Ambassador. My work spans figurative, abstract, digital, and light art, blending classical depth with contemporary innovation. With a professional background in education, aviation, administration, and journalism across several countries, I draw on diverse life experiences to inform my creative expression. My art explores meaningful intangible subjects, inviting viewers into spaces of reflection and emotional connection. My journey began in childhood, crafting an art magazine by hand before the digital era and earning early recognition, including top art prizes from the Department of Education and the Governor-General. These formative experiences ignited a lifelong passion for visual storytelling and the power of art to communicate beyond words. The first artwork that moved me revealed how art communicated, a silent dialogue between the visible and the unseen. That experience inspires my exploration and world connection.
Can you define the word "art" according to your personal view?
In my book Shifting Waves (published in 1998), I wrote that “Culture is the soul of life as much as art is the soul of culture. Art is a mirror reflecting our own identity and everything related to ourselves, our thoughts, passions, feelings and values. Art is how one can convey these cultural messages to people. art is a tool used to reflect this soul and life, and it is means by which the artist, as a medium of expression, conveys the relevant messages, to lead the way. Artists must be well cultured. knowledgeable, have a unique perception, visions, feelings and sensitiveness.” This idea still reflects my belief that art expresses our identity and values, connecting us to one another through shared emotion and understanding. In my view, art goes beyond aesthetics, it preserves culture, heritage and serves as a universal language through which we express who we are and what we value. Effective art can change our perspective and understanding the inner necessity of the world. It has the power to transform our views, revealing the truth and the essence of our shared humanity and our continual remaking of our world.
What do you want your art to convey to the people who see it?
My artistic intention is to transcend the superficial aspects of visual experience and to engage viewers with the deeper, often overlooked dimensions of reality. I paint with light itself as material to impinge the medium of perception to raise consciousness in the viewers’ mind. My aim is to reveal the intangible; those unseen forces, hidden narratives, and underlying truths that shape human existence but remain invisible in everyday perception. Through my art I desire to inspire viewers to see with their third eye to open a gateway to higher consciousness, to rethink their perspectives, spark imagination, and encourage positive change for a better world.
What do you think is the most meaningful role an artist plays in society today?
I believe, in essence, the artist’s role is both mirror and lantern reflecting possibilities. Works of art do not represent reality or real world. Rather, art creates realities and worlds. The most meaningful role an artist plays in society today is a bridge. Artists have the unique ability to observe and reflect the complexities of the world; its beauty, pain, struggles, and hopes and translate them into forms that speak to our shared humanity. Through their work, artists challenge narratives; artists open spaces for dialogue, empathy, and understanding beyond surface appearances and engage with deeper truths. Influential artists can transform perception and change insights, although they sometimes reinforce conventional assumptions as well. In a time marked by division, noise, distraction, war and uncertainty, artists help people reimagine and rethink new possibilities, inspire healing, and offer connection, hope and peace.
In an increasingly globalized world, how can artists preserve authenticity and cultural integrity in their work?
In a globalized world, preserving authenticity and cultural integrity requires artists to stay deeply rooted in their own histories, stories, and traditions while remaining open to dialogue and exchange. It is about honoring the specificity of one’s heritage without reducing it to surface aesthetics. Authenticity emerges when artists engage thoughtfully with their cultural identity, reflecting its complexities, contradictions, and evolving nature. By doing so, they contribute to a richer, more diverse global conversation that respects differences and fosters understanding rather than dilution or appropriation. Basically, preserving authenticity in art today means embracing both rootedness and openness, staying true to one’s cultural self while engaging meaningfully with the diverse world.
How has your artistic style transformed over the years?
Are there specific influences, experiments, or moments that marked a turning point?
Over the years, my artistic style has evolved from classical figurative painting into a more fluid multidisciplinary practice that merges traditional and digital techniques. A key turning point occurred when I began experimenting with light itself, capturing the essence of its fleeting movement and creating abstract work in painterly unique style, then reinterpreting and transforming it digitally. This process deepened my engagement with themes of spirituality, psychology, humanity, memory, identity and transformation while my cultural heritage and social awareness enriched the emotional and conceptual layers of my work. Each experiment continues to refine how I express invisible truths and invite moments of contemplation, curiosity, exploration, reflection and connection.
List five moments or achievements in your career that fill you with gratitude.
I am deeply grateful for several milestones that have shaped my artistic journey and affirmed my creative vision.
1. MFA and Light Exploration (2014): - Completing my Master of Fine Arts at the University of Sydney was transformative, where I began painting with light. My solo exhibition Threshold, contributing to UNESCO’s International Year of Light, earned me the Ambassador of Peace Award.
2. First Major Exhibition (1998): - Hosting Shifting Waves; I was honored to be the first artist to host my solo art exhibition at the NSW Parliament House. MY exhibition of prominent Australians’ portraits and book launch at the NSW Parliament, which was attended by the Minister for the Arts and other distinguished guests, was a moment of early recognition that inspired my lifelong artistic commitment.
3. Biennales and major Global Exhibitions: - I am honored to have exhibited at The XIII Florence Biennale (2021), the 21st Biennale of Sydney (2018), and international fairs such as Louvre Paris (2022), World Art Dubai (2025), and Artexpo New York (2025).
4. International Publications and Recognition: - My artwork appears in notable international art publications, such as Artisti’23, Masters of Art 21st Century 2025, and the Atlas of Contemporary Art 2026, earning recognition alongside top Contemporary World Masters.
5. Honors, Collections and Awards: - My art is part of the Museum of the Americas (USA) and Espace Vision’ Art (Paris) permanent collections. My artworks appear in both Dubai Registry and the Worldwide Encyclopedia of Contemporary Art. I am also an Honorary Member at the Museum of the Americas and serve an Honorary Associate Supporting Member of the Association Academy of Italy in Art in the World. I am grateful for receiving prestigious international awards, including First Prize in the Budapest Juried Art Competition (2023), an Honorary Presidential Award (2016), and the Medal of the Order of Australia ‘OAM’ (2017).
We are at the end of this short interview; would you like to add something about your artistic research?
How did you find the collaboration with our gallery?
Thank you for having me to share my work. Curiosity and a strong urge to connect with others drive my artistic research. It is an ongoing journey of exploration and discovery. Collaborating with your gallery has been a meaningful chapter in that journey, offering a space where ideas could grow, transform, and find new resonance. I appreciate the sensitivity, professionalism, and care that have shaped our collaboration.