A Tapestry of Color, Culture, and Collective Memory
Cover Artist Marianne Angeli Rodriguez
IN THE HEART of downtown Covington, two monumental, vibrant pink planters adorned with recurrent symbols and patterns give way to a matching pastel pink storefront that serves as the gallery and studio of artist Marianne Angeli Rodriguez. Marianne’s artwork is defined by explosions of color, filled with pulsating, rhythmic patterns that dance between the abstract and the familiar.
Original, tin crown molding, painted white, reminds viewers we are in a historic 1909 building. “We’re very grateful to be here,” she says, looking around.
Her journey here—both literal and artistic—has been anything but direct. Born in the Philippines, she spent her childhood moving across continents, from West Africa to England, from Guatemala back to the Philippines, before landing in the United States. “My parents worked for the UN, so we were transferred a lot,” she explains. She had been designing clothing and jewelry sourced from Kenya, which she showed and sold in New Orleans, when she was selected for “NOLAbound,” a documentary project showcasing New Orleans through the eyes of outsiders. Marianne’s future husband, musician Rock Whittington, wrote the soundtrack for the film. “We met on set,” she tells me.
They began their life together in the Blue-Plate Artist Lofts, living the quintessential starving artist experience. “We didn’t have a concrete plan, just a love for what we were doing,” she recalls. “New Orleans supports that kind of energy.”
In 2016, she bought her first canvas. “That was it,” she says simply; “I never looked back.” As their careers evolved, Marianne moved to Covington, where she established her first studio. “It wasn’t something I wanted initially,” she admits, “but it ended up being the best decision.” By 2020, she had secured her current location.
The movement, the transitions, the shifting cultures and colors—all of it would find its way into her work.
Marianne’s work is unmistakable— bold, joyful, bursting with radiant palettes that seem to hum with energy. “I always choose a bright, radiant palette,” she says. “When people walk into the gallery, I can see it—their bodies change. Color is so impactful.” “It’s like the art hugs you,” she muses; “You can feel it before you even process it.”
Marianne doesn’t paint things; she suggests them. “I don’t like to render things scientifically or realistically,” she explains. “I want to give people nostalgia, but their own nostalgia. I’ll hint at a tree, a cloud, a figure, but I want them to bring their own perspective to it.” She calls this sensation “familiar unfamiliarity.” “It’s about striking a chord with someone without them necessarily knowing why,” she says.
Her work is deeply influenced by global folk art, though she resists direct comparisons. “My parents collected folk art everywhere we lived,” she says. “We had masks from West Africa, paintings from Guatemala, handwoven textiles from the Philippines.” These influences emerge in her work not as direct imitations but as echoes— reminiscences of pattern, rhythm, and storytelling.
Marianne isn’t just a painter; she is fascinated by all manner of media, and she is open to finding the beauty in every element of the artistic process. Her “Remnants” collection repurposes fragments from her studio—pieces of old palettes, dried acrylic skins, scraps of color that would otherwise be discarded. “It’s not my signature thing,” she says, “but I do it once or twice a year.” The result is both a celebration of sustainability and a way for collectors to own an original piece of her work at a smaller scale.
Her upcoming collection, though still forming, is shaping itself around themes of memory and legacy. “I lost my grandmother this past fall,” she says. “She was such a force in my life. I’m thinking about how people shape us, how their presence lingers in the things we create, and of the nostalgia of childhood.”
The idea of art as design is something that excites her. “I want my art to be in people’s lives, not just on their walls,” she says. “To be something they live with, something that surrounds them.”
Marianne’s work has found a powerful and deeply meaningful home in hospitals, The Healing Arts Foundation in St. Tammany has showcased her work, recognizing its ability to uplift, soothe, and inspire. For Marianne, knowing that her art brings comfort to patients and their families is one of the most rewarding aspects of her career. “That’s where I want my work to be,” she says. “Somewhere it can make a difference.”