Welcome

SHAUN MARTIN

My work continues to be all about remaining open to certain artistic possibilities outside of my original concept for each piece.

I enjoy staying intuitive as I work into the materials. I feel a real collaboration with my art. Allowing the pieces to form and show me certain directions to explore keeps me present when I’m creating. Sometimes a piece comes out so simple and clear that it stands alone well. Other times, an individual piece is better served as a supporting component rather than the whole itself.

I do a lot of notebook sketching in black & white to look at spatial relationships and design elements. I like to keep my sketches simple and vague enough to give the physical creation of the piece a place to grow. When my drawings become too detailed or thought out, I usually don’t end up making that piece. If I flush out an idea to its complete conclusion on paper, I feel creatively satisfied and it’s time to move on.

In my more sculptural paintings, I use symbols and marks to represent concepts, places, people and movement. In my figurative work, I’m more interested in capturing the feeling of an emotional moment, tension or gesture. Occasionally, the titles of the work can lead to an understanding of these symbols and feelings. Most often they’re just for my own internal dialogue.

My work has been described as having an ancient or tribal feeling. I am very interested in the qualities of ritual, history and private experience. I like the idea that these pieces seem to have had a previous life. To me, many of the pieces feel like a physical memory of a cultural or personal ceremony.

Artist