Mark Renfro

Acrylic Painter | painting memories

Mark Renfro is an acrylic painter living in the village of Fairport with his wife Pam and their cat. He retired after a 31-year career with Wegmans Food Markets and now devotes his creative energy to painting wherever space allows—his “studio” is a multipurpose room within his home. Mark and Pam have two grown children, a daughter-in-law, and a granddaughter, all of whom continue to inspire much of his work.

Mark’s artistic journey began early, sketching Marvel superheroes and characters from The Lord of the Rings during his adolescent years. In his late teens, he explored colored pencils and oil pastels, creating expressive big-eyed cats and dogs as well as album-cover art. By his early twenties, he discovered acrylic paint—a medium he has worked with exclusively ever since.

While painting has always been more of a passion than a career pursuit, it remains an essential and deeply personal practice for Mark. He finds that he paints best when he feels a strong emotional connection to his subject. Most of his work depicts memorable places from family and friends’ travels or visual interpretations of moments and experiences that hold special meaning. Many of these paintings live in his own home or in the homes of his children, while countless others have been gifted over the years—birthday presents, holiday surprises, or spontaneous offerings made simply for the joy of sharing art.

Mark approaches the world with a painter’s eye, often asking himself, “Would that make a good painting?”—and just as often, “Could I actually pull that off?” He begins with a series of photographs and works to transform them into meaningful expressions on canvas. When creating a piece for someone else, he takes time to understand what they see and feel when looking at the scene, striving to capture not just the image, but the emotion behind it.