Art as Revolution: Marina Heintze’s Unflinching Vision of Truth and Transformation

By: Leah Kogen Elimeliah

In the spring of 2024, I encountered Marina Heintze at 81 Leonard Gallery, an artist-run space in SoHo and home to an artist, Nancy Pantirer. The gallery had just unveiled Art on Antisemitism, a powerful exhibition in collaboration with the Jewish Art Salon. Marina’s pieces commanded attention — “Nana Rocks” and “Fuck You Frances Galton” from her Gentian Violet/Violence series were prominently displayed in the windows. At the same time, the arresting “Yitler” greeted visitors near the entrance. The latter, a fusion of the faces of two infamous antisemites, immediately drew the eye for its provocative subject matter and its deceptive medium. Upon closer inspection, what initially appeared to be a painting was a complex mixed-media assemblage, rich in layers of socio-political commentary that resonated deeply with the exhibition’s themes. 

We spoke briefly outside the gallery, Marina’s sharp energy palpable even in casual conversation as I petted her dog, Kabbalah. After her return to LA, we reconnected over Zoom and text, where I became increasingly intrigued by her dynamic awareness and the depth of her artistic vision. Marina’s world is vast and uncompromising, tackling challenging subjects with a fearless clarity. Her work transcends traditional boundaries, employing mixed media to break down and reconstruct societal norms, urging viewers to uncover deeper truths about history, nature, and the fractured systems we inhabit. 

Her practice is both a call to action and an invitation to reflect. Marina bridges ideas and mediums to expose institutional corruption—from the United Nations to Western academia—with a nuanced critique of societal narratives. Her works confront us with the discomforting realities of sexual violence, power abuse, and the widespread failure of empathy when the truth is inconvenient. In Marina’s universe, art is not merely a reflection of the world but a force to reshape it, encouraging us to reimagine the possibilities for change. 

LEAH: I would love to hear about your journey as an artist. 

MH: Since I was old enough to learn how to help out in my dad’s studio in the loft, aka our house. Plug, Rudy Heintze. It started because I was raised in the epicenter of an Art First household. My father is an artist who makes sculptures. My mother is an art advisor. So, I was inundated by art in all aspects of life. No one told me you can be a doctor. This almost sounds like some form of indoctrination. 

As far as formal education, I went to the magnet art high school in NYC called the Fame School, aka LaGuardia, and went to CalArts for my BFA. I came back from LA to NYC to work production in the film industry, then went back to school, to Parsons, and got my degree in graphic design. I worked in the magazine world + fashion world + did design + production before moving into the tattoo world (which requires no degrees) and did that for many years. I eventually opened a business called MEATTT, INC., a small tattoo studio + art studio in the back in Bushwick, Brooklyn. 

I started making more large-scale watercolor paintings — then a fire happened- and burned all my tools + artwork + everything + water damage. That was incredibly devastating. I recalibrated and found a new studio, which I called Nakapatchi (named after a hybrid Yiddish word my grandmother used that meant ‘naked cute baby bottom’). I started making art again while simultaneously scaling down my tattooing to appointments only, focusing more of my time on creating new work on a large scale. 

For various reasons, I then picked up and moved to LA, where I have been working since 2018. The journey is still happening, so it is hard to step back. But I have reached a point where I am very solid on my goals and hyper-focused on the series I have to finish. The journey is not over. For now, LA, but New York is calling my name … so in the new future, I can see myself back in NY — once a New Yorker, always a New Yorker. 

Leah: Your work has a fascinating political interplay, particularly in your use of ancient texts like the Kama Sutra. While traditionally centered on passion, love, desire, and eroticism, your interpretation dives deep into the body, transcending gender. You juxtapose the Kama Sutra with themes of sexual abuse, violence, and the exploitation of women. Could you elaborate on the thought process behind this series and your exploration of these exploitative dynamics? 

MH: My artwork involves investigative journalism, where I do lots of research and compile documentation before I begin the actual art piece. 

To answer the question — yes, I compiled most of my research for the “Kama Shooter” series from the Kama Sutra, plus an exercise sex position book and various images of classic pin-up girls to ultimately create my positions for the works. 

The connection is to sexual violence as well as ‘regular’ violence, which sounds kind of absurd. There is no such thing as regular violence. Living in America and using the USA English lexicon, we have so many degrees and categories of violence. The culture of the American language almost gets high on the jargon of taxonomy. Connecting my work to gun and sexual violence would be the two main categories of violence. I think this concept of black-and-white thinking used in psychology plays into the work too; opposites attract, male vs. female, fighting violence with love (two opposites) to equal nonviolence have always been drawn to the symbolism + philosophy behind the yin and yang. 

And yes, you nailed it. Exploitation is another issue to touch on. The body, in general, is exploited on the internet through our own doing, i.e., the selfie. This does not erase the individual's responsibility. One has to be cognizant of what they are doing. Am I the only one thinking it's weird to take a picture of yourself and put it in an Instagram grid? 
We live in a voyeuristic culture. Everyone’s Instagram feed is reminiscent of Hitchcocks’ Rear Window flick. The classic slogan for marketing, “sex sells,” has never wavered. We can look at the business models of the Kardashians and see how much influence their artificial (irony*) I should say medically made/altered bodies (not sure if their plastic surgeons have been women, so never assume*) have redefined beauty standards not just in the “west.” The online filtering has moved quickly to where the scalpel ends. Give us the Botox, the lipo, the Ozempic. Don’t worry about the blockages. THE CULTURE IS THE TARGET. What kind of culture do we live in when it comes from the internet, spreading memes (memetics—viruses), and is based on fast trends? 

Who have we become? American culture is hyper-focused on individualism, which seems counterintuitive. Have most individuals already adopted this ‘hive-mind’ way of being, thinking, and looking? The question really is, what are we becoming? Evolution has not stopped.

LEAH: The titles of your various series are particularly captivating. Could you share more about the influences that inspire them and how you approach crafting these titles? 

MH: “Poli-Ticks,” “Web Women,” “Kama Shooter…” I first make the work and then come up with the titles later. I think about what my job is, as the artist. I remember I had to do a write-up of my “Kama Shooter” pieces at SPRINGBREAK; chat GPT wasn’t around to help out. The theme right before Covid hit in 2020 was “excess.” I wrote about the stickers, the patterns, and the meticulous details. For the series “Poli-Ticks,” I was inspired by the recounting of voter ballots in the eight swing states and the people who had to count the votes. Their lives became a targeted hellscape during and after. Each piece was made from “I voted” stickers, gloss medium, tape, and target paper mounted on gatorboard. I researched the county's voter data of each state; you can pull this information all from the web; it's open-source data. The sticker-patterning within the figures state heads are either red or blue depending on which way the county data swung. There is a lot of wordplay even describing the work, ie. , The heads of the State, which the word itself can mean the state of being or a state in the U.S.A.

The patterns of the bodies are intuitive not based on research. I wanted this series to be based on correct data; this was essential to me because I am interested in dissecting the idea of fraud, gerrymandering/the changing of county lines, and what it means for voters. Then there’s the Russian tampering element in our elections. Remember, Democracy is an experiment. It's fragile, and even though I hate this word, it is what it is. If no one believes in it, then it ain't happening. 

LEAH: How do you get inspired/What inspires you? 

MH: Sometimes ideas just pop up in my head. For example, the idea of targeting women came to me when I went shooting. Afterward, I took the target paper that I shot at and scanned it in. I wanted to memorialize my shots. Later, I tweaked the colors, using neon orange and blue.

Looking up target shooting paper, I realized that when you shoot, you can reuse the paper by putting these specific stickers on the shots, so it's pretty much recycling your shooting paper. The stickers have coding on them. If you see yellow dots, you need to work on being a better marksman. 

LEAH: Would you categorize your work as a form of activism? How do you relate to the subjects and themes you explore? I understand you often speak of bodies as a field, always a moving target — could you expand on this concept? 

MH: I am not an activist. I don't go to protests, but I used to. Things happen through legislation, the government and by who and what we, as the people, vote on. Of course, activism matters, but I don't like to categorize and put political labels on myself. I am one of those purists—since I don't see myself as a politician, the work I do is through my art. The word activism, like so many other words, has been tainted, misused, and misconstrued. Words change because of the culture.

I am an idea person. I make the art. I explore, research, and form my work around whatever ideas come to me. I like the subjects that are not talked about, misconstrued, or not believed, perhaps not dealt with properly or even in realistic terms. I seek to find answers to questions many don't have answers for because there is no one answer. Can this be solved? Is it being tackled enough? How do we fix this? 

I am a seeker of truth. For example, currently, in our world climate, I have become interested in learning about the origins of terrorism, terrorism as a culture and the psychology behind it.  I am looking for a cure for the diseased mind. I grew up eight blocks from the Twin Towers, in the exposure zone, and was in NYC on September 11. I can’t explain it but I never thought of myself as someone who had first-hand experience with terrorism. I was so wrong. I am still dealing with all of my parents' paperwork for the WTC health registry + VCF because both of them have had different cancers. There is definitely a health component to my work that seems to be a consistent theme. This dates back to when I was an undergrad at CalArts. I worked on a series called CANCRI FLOR, that's Latin for Cancer Flower; the work was basically the title: giant flowers made of photographic visceral images of various cancers in a grow room, with custom wallpaper. The pattern of the wallpaper was of uterine myomas made into fleur de lys patterns. I researched specifically HPV/Cervical Cancers, GIST tumors, breast cancers, and so on, most likely heavily influenced by what I witnessed.

My interest in sex and violence, which I experienced myself at one point in time, is another theme in my work. In general, I don't think we realize how violent America is. There are multiple forms of violence, such as mass shootings and suicide bombings. In my series, “The Vests” + “The Bikinis” I speak to the violence across this country and the world. Who is buying things like bulletproof vests, guns, or ammunition? Is there any monitoring of the buyers of this equipment off Amazon.com? You can buy anything online. The series questions the problems in this country and who exactly is the perpetrator of such acts of violence. Why is violence our baseline? 

LEAH: Can you tell me about the UNWRAHAMAS Fish Lure art piece? 

MH: This is one of the pieces from the broader Lure series I am working on. I keep adding to the series because there are so many outside players involved. Like many, I have been following what's going on since October 7, inundated by legacy media misinformation and the hyperfocus of Israel coverage. I watch and listen. There are so many videos online + on Telegram, specifically the body cam videos from Hamas terrorists, which I saw again at Nova in NYC + LA multiple times. I guess this series is coming from so much pain and frustration. I see history repeating itself. I knew I wanted to create works about October 7 because I saw many people who didn't believe what had happened. It's been so infuriating, particularly with organizations like UNRWA. There are many institutions + fronts acting as non-profits and countries that are currently backing terrorism. The next lures I am working on are the combination of Harvard University & Qatar, i.e., their tight relationship. Go figure, they have the same colors, maroon, and white, Qatar’s flag, and Harvard’s logo/branding. Amnesty International and Al-Jazeera seem like a good pair, too. My list is long and doesn’t stop at Hamas or the Red Cross, it focuses on many proxy Terror groups and, of course, the head of the snake: Iran. The lures are dictated by my method of color matching and coordinating similar ideologies: terror funding and intimate involvement with one another. The entire series will allude to their cross-pollination of activities while exposing their symbols and associations to terrorism. 

LEAH: Can you talk about your work in the Artists Against Antisemitism exhibition, which ran in the summer at 81 Leonard Gallery in NYC? 

MH: I submitted some works, and the curators chose “Yitler” from 2023, made of Spirit gentian violet antifungal/bacterial tattoo transfer paper, silicone, wood, plexi, glue, watercolor paper, polymer bones, (Yeezy’s) aka Eva slides and cd-roms. Then  “Nana Rocks,” made in  2022, is made of polymer bones, gentian violet paper and can house orchids. The last piece in the exhibition was “Fuck You Francis Galton,” from 2022, made of gentian violet transfers, neon yellow latent fingerprinting pigment, and gloss medium on watercolor paper. All works are part of the Gentian Violet/Violence series. 

The paper used in these works comes from gentian violet, aka crystal violet. I manually feed a special printer, just like a carbon copy process, one by one, with this anti-fungal/anti-bacterial ‘Spirit’ paper; its original usage is for stencil making for a tattoo. It is also used in Histology/Pathology and by plastic surgeons in pen form. Some put the liquid form on babies' tongues to treat thrush, it stains their tongues purple. The bottom line is whichever form of Gentian Violet you use, it stains whatever it touches with this brilliant purple color. I print specific images of microscopic bacterium and viruses. The “Fuck You Francis Galton” piece is about diseases, the founder of eugenics, dog breeding, haplogroups+genetics, historical dog whistles, the use of language through this political term of ‘dog whistling’ and, of course, linking all those to historical and current Antisemitism.

The antifungal/bacterial transfer paper for these pieces speaks to the work itself.  An oxymoron, if you will. This directly relates to the theme of Antisemitism because of the slur “dirty Jew,” now changed to “dirty Zionist”. Zionist has become interchangeable with the word Jew, ultimately, a dog whistle. For generations, Jews have been falsely accused of directly spreading disease or being involved, historically, the Black Plague and, more recently, COVID-19. After a major security breach on 23andMe’s website, hackers targeted specifically Chinese and Jewish*Ashkenazim DNA data and released this onto the dark web. I am one of 23andme’s users who had been hacked, and my DNA data had been compromised. All of this was because the hackers believed COVID-19 did not affect Chinese or Ashkenazi DNA.  

The “Yitler” piece speaks to the hate and Antisemitism that was coming out of Kanye West. Most notably, his admiration of Hitler and Ye’s homemade Excel spreadsheet/ list of music executives pushing the classic Antisemitic trope of Jewish control. 

I am very much into DNA and genealogy research. Even though my DNA data was comprised on 23andMe, I was able to find lost family members who survived the Shoah.  I cross-referenced with a recent discovery of old family letters and found my second cousin whose daughter even came to the exhibition in NYC. It’s wild. The connection was through my grandmother, Ludmilla, it is her face that's in the ‘Nana Rocks’ artwork. Both her parents were murdered in the Holocaust, but only one of her mother’s sisters escaped, and that cousin is from that side of the family. I thought there was no one left.

LEAH: How have you personally been feeling since October 7? 

MH: I think the gatherings we are all having, like the dinner organized by the curators of the Artists on Antisemitism exhibition, where the artists who were part of the show and others, primarily women, gathered to bring in Shabbat, is truly special. The communities that formed the connections built are all vital and very much needed right now and always.

But I am angry. I am furious about the college campuses, the students who are indoctrinated, by faculty that are indoctrinating and still getting paid. Oh and the board members, the CEOs, and everybody involved, minus the janitors, like in Columbia University, they are the only sane people. 

Whatever I can do to help, I want to do. I want to go to Israel to volunteer. I felt this way even before October 7. Many of my family members were obliterated in the concentration sub-camps, so after October 7, I am just even more passionate about what I believe in and what I have been doing, questioning and exposing. I am very hurt by the very close relationships and friendships I have lost. It's very telling of people's character by their reactions, predominantly not Jewish, but some Jewish as well. Jewish self-hatred is very real. Most people don't want to listen to what you have to say. They only want to hear themselves, so be it. It's important for everyone fighting the fight to get tight on their Jewish history, stay close to each other and the archeological facts, and learn about the countries surrounding Israel. 

My friend is a cultural anthropologist, and we have been talking about how people just don't understand Jews for years. Whose job is it to make them understand? Maybe it's no one’s job if they don't want to learn. And maybe American Jews also don't understand Jews. We are so diverse. One identity doesn't fit all. When we have to fill out applications/residency and put our race or ethnicity, there is no Jewish box to fill out, this is a very American census-driven way of categorizing people. I always put “other”. I am not white. We are not white people. We are Jews indigenous to Israel. 

LEAH: Where do you think the art world is going? 

MH: Who knows...But this makes me think of something I recently heard at a dinner: "I was born free.” Everything in the mind intersects with the work - some entities are visible, others are not visible, there are ideas about what art should be, and you can really fuck yourself in the head if you think too much about that. I focus only on my work; it's what I can control - my emotions, behavior, and art. Everything else is fleeting. If I put myself or parts of myself into someone else’s hands, I will be a shell of a person. I must practice to self-validate. One must have a strong internal core of an art-belief system to survive. I was involved in the art world for so long, and then I said to myself, fuck it. The people you are meant to connect with will gravitate towards you, and you will gravitate towards them. Leave those behind who try to do you harm.