Spiderweb Art Gallery has announced that one of their members will be guest lecturer at the Norman Rockwell Museum. On November 10, 2018 at 5 PM, Mark Romanoski will speak about the lessons he has learned from Rockwell, as well as the interesting work he has done for such companies as DC Comics, Upper Deck, Warner Bros, and Universal Studios.

Romanoski grew up in North Plainfield, New Jersey and, according to Spiderweb Art Gallery, always had art in his life. Along with drawing, he also enjoyed comics and fantasy-related material. He graduated in 1992 from Kean College with a BFA in Illustration, then became more serious about art once he met Tim Hildebrandt who showed Romanoski how much he could still learn about art.

Romanoski was introduced to DC Comics artist Joe DeVito, who taught him an academic approach to illustration and convinced him to enroll at the Art Students League in New York. He spent two years studying a wide variety of painting styles and techniques. After that, he enrolled in DuCret School of Arts in Plainfield, NJ where he studied under Peter Caras, another well known Rockwell protégé.

One reason Romanoski was chosen for this honor was for his Pop Meets Rockwell series, in which he took an iconic Rockwell image and incorporated bits of modern and classic pop culture. Some examples are his interpretation of Rockwell’s Wicket Thoughts, featuring the Joker and Harley Quinn; Triple Self-Portrait, depicting the Joker; and The Connoisseur, featuring the Riddler.

According to Spiderweb, Romanoski has always been inspired by Rockwell. These pieces and more will be on display during his lecture and will be available for purchase at Spiderweb’s gallery. More information on the Norman Rockwell Museum and the lecture can be found at www.nrm.org.