Marlene has been dedicated to the environmental green movement in art since 1965. A pioneer of environmental protection through her art, she founded the Rainforest Art Foundation in 2001 to inspire the public and other artists around the world to protect our planet.

A. Glacier Melting Series:

1. Melting Glacier (1965 – 2020)

2. Glacier Garden (1966 – 2020)

3. March of Iceberg (2007 – 2020)

B. Rainforest Series:

2. Forest Moss (1998 – 2019)

1. Emerald Forest (1998 – 2018)

3. Forest Fire (1998 – 2019)

4. Forest Cloud, Rain, Snow, Wind (1998 – 2004)

5. Purple Swamp (2011 – 2019)

II. Beyond and Beneath (1964 – 2016)

Besides depicting the nature seen through her naked eyes in her everyday life, she also likes to explore nature through her own imagination in her art – to the far corners of the universe, beyond the horizon of the sea and beneath the earth.

A. Space & Universe Series:

1. Aurora Borealis (2018-2021)

2. Black Hole (1969 – 2003)

3. Cloud as Dog (1968 – 2003)

4. Galaxy & Milky Way (1987 – 2018)

5. Mushroom Cloud (1987 – 1997)

6. Planets of the Universe (1987 – 1998)

7. Silver Lining (2012 – 2013)

B. Underwater Series:

1. Blue Lagoon (1964 – 2015)

2. Dancing Coral (1968 – 2015)

3. Deep Sea Garden (1968 – 2019)

4. Sunken Treasure (1989 – 2016)

C. Underground Series:

1. Cave Garden (1968 – 2019)

2. Cave Treasure (1968 – 2003)

III. Forces of Nature (1963 – 2018)

Yu focuses on rhythm and movement to express forces in natural phenomena. She uses Chinese landscape brush techniques, western abstract forms and colors to achieve various effects. She hopes to show movement in two-dimensional paintings.

A. Force in Nature Series:

1. Amber Glow (1984 – 2018)

2. Aspen Leaves and Wind (1963 – 1988)

3. Avalanche (1968 – 2020)

4. Black and White (1965 – 2019)

5. Canyon and Red Rock (1967 – 2018)

6. Concave Veil (1984 – 1996)

7. Crystal Reef (1978 – 2020)

8. Geyser and Spring (1968 – 1992)

9. Melting (1965 – 2007)

10. Molten Lava (1968 – 2020)

11. Reflection (1963 – 2011)

12. Slow Motion and Floating (1968 – 2007)

13. Sweep and Splash (1971 – 2005)

14. Turquoise Floating (1968 – 2020)

15. Wave and Fall (1968 – 2020)

16. White Crest (1971 – 2015)

III. Dream Series (1984 – 1986)

Images in more realistic forms were inspired and derived from her own abstract depiction of nature. In this series, Yu tells stories about love by placing female bodies and animals symbolic of the male together on paper. The paintings tell classical and legendary love stories. Dream Series is a minor series, lasting only three years from 1984 to 1986. Following those years, she returned to her life-long passion to paint nature.