Marco Alex is an American realist artist based in New York City whose work explores the quiet melancholy and haunting beauty of modern urban life. Deeply influenced by the psychological realism of Edward Hopper and the sensual storytelling of Jack Vettriano, Marco’s paintings often depict solitary figures in intimate urban interiors—bars, cafés, apartments, and other familiar spaces around New York City that echo the loneliness and longing of city existence.

 

Working primarily in oil paint, and occasionally in acrylics, Marco blends cinematic light with emotional realism to create scenes that feel both personal and universal. His compositions are often drawn from places he frequented growing up, turning memory into mood and nostalgia into narrative.

 

When the intensity of painting becomes overwhelming, Marco turns to documentary-style photography as another means of storytelling—capturing the same sense of isolation, reflection, and quiet beauty through the lens. The female figure remains a recurring source of inspiration throughout his work—sometimes as a symbol of desire and distance, other times as a departure into warmth and connection.

 

Though much of his art reflects solitude, Marco occasionally paints two figures together, capturing rare moments of shared intimacy and fleeting joy—reminders that even in loneliness, connection is possible.