Donald Martiny | |
|---|---|
 Donald Martiny working in his studio | |
| Born | 1953 |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Art Students League of New York New York University Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts |
| Known for | Painting |
| Spouse | Celia Johnson |
| Website | donaldmartiny |
Donald Martiny (born 1953 in Schenectady, New York) is an American artist. His abstract paintings are related to both action painting and Abstract expressionism.
Donald Martiny studied from 1977 to 1980 at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. From 1980 to 1983 he was a student at the Art Students League of New York. At the same time he attended courses on art at the New York University. From 2007 to 2009 he continued his education at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.[1] He lives and works in Ivoryton, Connecticut.[2]
In 2015 Martiny received a scholarship as an Artist in Residence of the Sam & Adele Golden Foundation for the Arts in New Berlin, New York State[3] and was represented in the annual exhibition of the artists there. Also in 2015, Martiny was invited to produce two large works for the One World Trade Center, which are permanently exhibited there. Martiny has lectured at Cornell University and at the Ackland Art Museum. There, in 2016, he conducted a public discussion on the painter Hans Hoffmann in the context of an exhibition of his works.[4]
In an interview, Martiny has been called a gestural abstractionist.[5] This term refers to a method of how the painter applies color to an object: "The idea was that the artist would physically act out his inner impulses, and that something of his emotion or state of mind would be read by the viewer in the resulting paint marks." (Tate Galleries)[6] This technique is also known as Action painting.
Martiny describes his work as follows: "My paintings are actual authentic gestures. These brushstrokes are very much me and I want to be present in the works as honestly and authentically as I can be. They are a record of my physicality at a specific point in time."[5]
Martiny does not paint on canvases or rectangular backgrounds. His works show the immediately frozen brushstroke, as Martiny designed it in his movements. He had to experiment for years with the composition of the paint, which should be liquid enough to reproduce the brush stroke well and at the same time be so durable in a dry state that the work can be mounted on the wall without breaking. The finished work is reinforced by an aluminium plate cut to the exact dimensions of the brush stroke as a base. The paintings then look like a relief on the wall.
The paint Martiny uses consists of a mixture of water-based polymers enriched with pigments. Sometimes he stretches this mixture with so-called microbubbles, which ensure that the paint looks light.[5]
In contrast to the working method of other artists of Action painting, Martinys works are not only spontaneous. He first creates a sketch in miniature and, if he likes it, he produces the work in ever larger dimensions. He always works on the floor because this situation gives him the greatest freedom in his brushstrokes. He makes his own brushes, and sometimes he also takes his hands to express all his current emotions in the work. Martiny on his works: "Brushstrokes are dances trapped in paintings".[5]
In November 2022, Donald Martiny designed the set for a dance performance by Amy Hall Garner of the Paul Taylor Dance Company at the David H. Koch Theater at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, titled Somewhere in the Middle: "Donald Martiny’s set – hanging brushstroke pieces that show dimension through the thick, sometimes bumpy paint texture – changes in color and shape throughout the work, matching the liveliness of Mark Eric’s bright costumes (briefs and bras overlaid with transparent fabric).[7]
