ICEBOX GALLERY Presents:

“Inside Looking Out”
An Exhibit of Marc Norberg’s Personal Photography

Opening May 11, 2024

Images selected by
ICEBOX Gallery owner Howard M. Christopherson

Marc Norberg is well known as one of the most successful and influential Twin Cities commercial photographers of the 1980s and ’90s. He shot countless corporate projects and his vivid black-and-white portraits of great Blues musicians are among the finest ever made in any musical genre. Those Blues portraits became a celebrated photo book—Black & White Blues, published by Graphis. But out of the limelight, Marc also created a large body of innovative personal work that has never been properly shown to the public. This exhibit, curated by ICEBOX Gallery owner Howard M. Christopherson, aims to help remedy that oversight and look more deeply into Marc as a creative artist.

“Inside Looking Out” includes: Marc’s self-portraits; striking studies of his studio’s jumble of equipment and furniture; penetrating, larger-than-life portraits of all kinds of people young and old; experimental darkroom prints; and surprisingly moving images of a dancer’s very expressive hands. Also included are some candid people photography, nude studies, and images showing Marc’s fascination with light and shadow. It’s an eclectic outpouring of photographic inspiration.

Marc was born and raised in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, where he began making photographs at the age of twelve. He attended the University of South Dakota, majoring in Art & Photography. Marc sharpened his skills as a photography assistant before opening his Minneapolis studio in 1987.

Marc also taught Advanced photography at the College of Visual Art and Minneapolis College of Art and Design.

After winning many commercial-art awards, he retired from commercial photography in 2006. Marc currently resides in Saint Paul and continues to delight his friends with his exuberant and eccentric personality—while living with moderate dementia.

Marc Norberg: Beauty and Joy and Serendipity

“This exhibit is meant to add to our understanding of one of the Midwest’s great photographers,” said curator Howard Christopherson. “‘Inside Looking Out’ attempts to show the playful, creative side of Marc. His love of light and shadow. His affection for form and people’s faces. His love of beauty. His joy in simple serendipity. Some images show the randomness of things in a busy studio—equipment, furniture, lighting—yet they compel the eye with their unexpected coherence and clarity

“Marc’s photography has evolved for more than forty years,” Christopherson continued. “That represents thousands of dramatic and beautiful images. Major corporations came to rely on his vision and unique insights for their annual reports and marketing campaigns. While in the midst of his professional success, Marc developed a passion for the masters of the Blues. He photographed almost every major Blues artist of the 1980s and ‘90s, culminating in the cherished table-top book Black & White
Blues. The portraits inside included B. B. King, John Lee Hooker, Etta James, Johnny Winter and dozens of other greats. But Marc didn’t stop with portraits. He also depicted the Blues environment, showing old pianos, cigarette butts, and the dusty, shopworn green rooms of American Blues clubs.”

This is the third time Marc has exhibited at ICEBOX Gallery. His first ICEBOX Show was in 2001. “Now My Soul, G.O.D. Delivers.Com” featured black and white prints of everyday places and objects that Marc shot over three years of carrying his camera with him at all times. His second ICEBOX show took place in 2015. “Cold Snap Blues” was a retrospective exhibition of thirty-three portraits of Blues artists selected from Black & White Blues.

Over the years, Marc’s commercial work for clients such as Carmichael Lynch, Newsweek, General Mills, and Medtronic has won numerous awards from major organizations—including Communications Arts, Graphis, AIGA, New York Art Director's Club, and the AR100.

In more recent years Marc has spent much of his time creating a book with his still life images and words—hoping it will help people better understand mental illness.

Opening May 11, 2024 6:00 - 9PM

Open 3 days during Art-A-Whirl, May 17-19, 2024 Fri 5-10, Sat 12-8, Sun 12-5

Open during Art Attack November 8-10, 2024 Fri 5-10, Sat 12-8, Sun 12-5

Open during some of the NK Building event nights. Check website or gallery.

Daily Gallery Viewed by Reservation Only / Sameday reservations often possible with a phone call.

ICEBOX Quality Framing & Gallery 1500 Jackson Street NE #443 Minneapolis, Minnesota 55413 Website: Iceboxminnesota.com Email: icebox@bitstream.net Phone: 612-788-1790