Michael Mazur dies at 73

“It is said that good writers have to be good listeners. Artists have to be good watchers. They have to watch their work instead of pre-planning it. I feel that way. Whenever you work with materials that are resistant, which is true of printmaking more than it is of drawing, but certainly true of painting, you have to listen in a certain way; you have to watch what the materials are doing for you. They may not be doing exactly what you wanted them to do. But they may be telling you something about what they can do.” – Michael Mazur, as quoted in 1993 to 1995 interview for the Smithsonian Archives of American Art.

We are sorry to hear that Michael Mazur, a Cambridge painter and printmaker who was a major presence in the local art scene for decades, died Tuesday, Aug. 18, at the age of 73. In lieu of flowers, remembrance donations are asked to be made in his memory to the Museum of Fine Arts, 465 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, or the Fine Arts Work Center, 24 Pearl Street, Provincetown, MA 02657.

Pictured: Michael Mazur, “Shallows,” 2007, woodcut.