Featured image: Power Play, Mark Overbey, 2012, oil on masonite assemblage, 26 x 42 in. / 66.04 x 106.68 cm.
Mark Overbey’s paintings span centuries of imagination, from medieval ceremony to war-torn allegory to the intimate realism of a quiet kitchen.
Mark Overbey creates narrative oil paintings that explore myth, history, and everyday life with cinematic scope and intimate detail.
His works are steeped in narrative and symbolism, blending the timelessness of myth with the grounded presence of lived experience. Through oil on linen, masonite, and canvas, Overbey invites us to step into richly painted worlds where history, fantasy, and daily life collide.
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Once Upon a Time, Mark Overbey, 2013, oil on linen, 26 x 32 in. / 66.04 x 81.28 cm.
In Once Upon a Time, Overbey reimagines the archetypal scene of knighthood. A queen, radiant in blue, extends her sword over a kneeling knight while monks and onlookers witness the ritual. The composition draws on medieval iconography but softens it with human detail, expressions of awe, hesitation, and reverence. The work reflects both the grandeur of myth and the vulnerability of human ceremony, reminding us that ideals of honor and loyalty are always grounded in people.
Attack on the Magic Kingdom, Mark Overbey, 2022, oil on masonite, 4.5 x 7 ft. / 54 x 84 in.
Attack on the Magic Kingdom is a sweeping, cinematic oil on masonite stretching over seven feet wide. Here, Overbey weaves together fragments of war and cultural imagery: tanks, smoke, drowned soldiers, and surreal figures collide with symbols of America’s dreamscape. The work functions as both historical commentary and allegorical critique, questioning how spectacle and violence intermingle in the collective imagination. Its scale intensifies the weight of history while forcing viewers to confront the uneasy blend of tragedy and mythology.
Culinary School, Mark Overbey, 2022, oil on canvas, 36 x 48 in. / 91.44 x 121.92 cm.
With Culinary School, Overbey pivots from war and legend to the precision of daily labor. A lone chef stands in a quiet industrial kitchen, absorbed in their craft. Stainless steel appliances and tiled floors dominate the composition, their surfaces rendered with meditative care. Unlike his epic and allegorical works, this painting celebrates the dignity of routine, the discipline of training, and the silent poetry found in preparation. It captures the profound humanity embedded in even the most ordinary environments.
Together, these three works reveal Mark Overbey’s remarkable ability to traverse myth, history, and modern life with equal intensity. From knights to tanks to kitchens, his art insists that meaning is found not only in legend and conflict, but also in the steady rhythm of work and craft. Overbey’s paintings remind us that the extraordinary is always present, whether in a coronation, a battlefield, or the glow of a kitchen stove.
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The Government/Media Complex, Mark Overbey, 2014, oil on masonite assemblage, 7.5 x 4 x 3 in. / 19.05 x 10.16 x 7.62 cm.
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