Mirabel Wigon

Root Rot, 2023

oil on paper mounted on panel

20 x 24 inches

$1,200

C-lective Curator’s Cut:

Root Rot, from the series Impermeable Film, presents a radiant yet unsettled meditation on growth, instability, and the unseen systems that sustain life. A warm ombré of pink dissolves into yellow and orange, creating an inviting surface that contrasts with the complexity beneath. Twisting roots and tendrils spiral inward like a portal, their forms subtly mirrored, suggesting both organic symmetry and a mediated echo. The composition feels intuitive and less overtly structured, yet it remains layered and perceptually dense, as if multiple fragments of place are converging within a single field. Here, flourishing and decay are inseparable, growth shadowed by breakdown, beauty intertwined with vulnerability. In keeping with her broader practice, Root Rot invites reflection on the fragile systems that shape our environments and the delicate tension between collapse and renewal.

We Love Mirabel. She is a Sacramento-based artist whose layered landscape paintings explore the natural and social forces shaping our world. She uses themes of human triumph and failure to imagine speculative futures grounded in co-dependency and resilience, revealing hidden worlds that help us navigate life's complexities.

Mirabel Wigon

“My oeuvre addresses notions of progress, instability, and system collapse as it relates to the built and natural environment.”

  • Bachelor of Fine Arts in Traditional Art from California State University, East Bay

    Masters of Fine Art in Drawing & Painting from California State University, Long Beach

  • Current Assistant Professor of Art (Drawing & Painting) at California State University, Stanislaus

    Vermont Studio Center Resident (2024) and “The Place on the PCH” Resident (2023)

    Recipient of multiple institutional grants at CSUS, including Teaching Initiative, Travel Fund, Instructional Activities Awards, and a $10K Research/Creative Activities Grant

    Linda A. Day Endowed Student Award (2019)

    Werby Marilyn Award

    CSULB Provost Purchase Award

Mirabel’s art explores the impact of our changing environment, using symbols that reflect the challenges of our current era. Her paintings invite viewers to think about how the land and landscape shape the stories and ideas we share as a culture. She builds up layers of images and materials on the surface of her work, creating scenes that are full of contradictions where shapes and gestures can mean different things at once.

Click here to see Mirabel’s latest interview with C-lective.