Laurie Martineau
I am a Dallas based artist who paints in an abstract format. My previous career was a commercial real estate professional who blended business with the architectural and design of constructed spaces. Myr education was in geology and mathematics - an odd combination of organic earthly elements with the precision of math. This juxtaposition finds its way into the work in urban building forms contrasting with organic curves and loops or contrasting color energies.
Technique
Using acrylic paint, charcoal, graphite, colored pencils and pastels, I build up a stratified surface of intention and fortunate accident. The paint is often layered in sections with some areas masked off and some areas sanded down to reveal color beneath. This creates a village of forms and history over which I like to pile on a sheer luminous layer of glaze – this allows the shapes and colors to remain but are now unified. I often incorporate collage elements both beneath and over color so random print media or maps peek through here and there like faded parchments, fresco walls, weathered signs - these surfaces reflect accumulated histories.
The work evolves and formulates on its own timeline – I am there to enjoy the process, the bouncing energies of the colors and the depth created with the layering and scraping back. But also, there is a struggle involved. I carve, I scrape, I sand, I cover up favorite parts, I mourn the loss and then uncover them again. Over time, a composition emerges, and I find what I’m looking for – a place with many stories and various energies that can be discovered over many viewings.
Recent work has been an exploration of the imperfection of sprawling urban shanty towns. Irregular structures, odd angles, leaning into each other with brilliant splashes of color amid tangles electrical wiring and old signs used as walls. Scrap corrugated metal is a common element that appears as stripe effects in recent work.
The physicality of the paint and the magic and surprise are the main elements of my work and hopefully that is also what will bring joy to the viewer.
My work is in homes and businesses across the United States.
I am a Dallas based artist who paints in an abstract format. My previous career was a commercial real estate professional who blended business with the architectural and design of constructed spaces. Myr education was in geology and mathematics - an odd combination of organic earthly elements with the precision of math. This juxtaposition finds its way into the work in urban building forms contrasting with organic curves and loops or contrasting color energies.
Technique
Using acrylic paint, charcoal, graphite, colored pencils and pastels, I build up a stratified surface of intention and fortunate accident. The paint is often layered in sections with some areas masked off and some areas sanded down to reveal color beneath. This creates a village of forms and history over which I like to pile on a sheer luminous layer of glaze – this allows the shapes and colors to remain but are now unified. I often incorporate collage elements both beneath and over color so random print media or maps peek through here and there like faded parchments, fresco walls, weathered signs - these surfaces reflect accumulated histories.
The work evolves and formulates on its own timeline – I am there to enjoy the process, the bouncing energies of the colors and the depth created with the layering and scraping back. But also, there is a struggle involved. I carve, I scrape, I sand, I cover up favorite parts, I mourn the loss and then uncover them again. Over time, a composition emerges, and I find what I’m looking for – a place with many stories and various energies that can be discovered over many viewings.
Recent work has been an exploration of the imperfection of sprawling urban shanty towns. Irregular structures, odd angles, leaning into each other with brilliant splashes of color amid tangles electrical wiring and old signs used as walls. Scrap corrugated metal is a common element that appears as stripe effects in recent work.
The physicality of the paint and the magic and surprise are the main elements of my work and hopefully that is also what will bring joy to the viewer.
My work is in homes and businesses across the United States.