Flying Spirit #1, South, 1970, lacquer on masonite
48 x 48 inches/122 x 122 cm
Private Foundation
48 x 48 inches/122 x 122 cm
Private Foundation
This series of paintings began in 1970 as a group of flying spirits. The subject matter is essentially spiritual: Buddha shapes, mandalas, guardians, heaven above and earth below, and the river as an emblem of time.
The pieces are made by applying between twenty and thirty layers of lacquer over a relief surface (frequently lace). Each layer of color covers all or part of the previous layer, making a hidden series of paintings one above the other. The painting is then carefully scraped back until it is complete, and then polished.
The pieces are made by applying between twenty and thirty layers of lacquer over a relief surface (frequently lace). Each layer of color covers all or part of the previous layer, making a hidden series of paintings one above the other. The painting is then carefully scraped back until it is complete, and then polished.
"Rich detail and texture and the durability of the medium give Martin's lacquered works a scale larger than their actual dimensions. Ceremonial, as though a result of many hands, rather than the product of many hours, Martin's process results in a multitude of jewel-like shapes that cooperate in serendipitous choreography."
Casey FitzSimons, ArtWeek
“Calling a painting decorative used to be an insult, but I think it is profoundly radical.”
Ivan Morley, artist, Los Angeles
Pivotless Pivot, 1970, lacquer on masonite
21 x 21 inches/53 x 53 cm
21 x 21 inches/53 x 53 cm
Private Foundation
Pivotless Pivot, detail
Flying Spirit #2 North - Ode to Billy Batman, 1972, lacquer on masonite
48 x 48 inches/122 x 122 cm
Collection of San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose, CA
48 x 48 inches/122 x 122 cm
Collection of San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose, CA
Flying Spirit #3 West, detail
Boy Mountain, 1979, lacquer on masonite
48 x 36 inches/122 x 91 cm
Estate of Don and Joan
Gilbert Martin
Boy Mountain, detail
24 x 48 inches/61 x 122 cm
Private Collection
Three of Cups, 1977, lacquer on masonite
24 x 24 inches/61 x 61 cm
24 x 24 inches/61 x 61 cm
Private Collection
Three of Cups, detail
One of Cups, 1977, lacquer on masonite
24 x 24 inches/61 x 61 cm
Private Collection
24 x 24 inches/61 x 61 cm
Private Collection
One, 1979, lacquer on masonite
48 x 42 inches/122 x 107 cm
Collection of San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose, CA
One, detail
Mandala #1, 1983, lacquer on masonite
24 x 24 inches/61 x 61 cm
Private Collection
Mandala #2, 1983, lacquer on masonite
24 x 24 inches/61 x 61 cm
24 x 24 inches/61 x 61 cm
Estate of Don and Joan
Gilbert Martin
Mesas, 1984, lacquer on masonite
36 x 36 inches/91 x 91 cm
Private Collection
Shadow Warrior (Guardian), 1984, lacquer on masonite
48 x 24 inches/122 x 61 cm
48 x 24 inches/122 x 61 cm
Estate of Don and Joan
Gilbert Martin
Dissolution in the Square, 1984, lacquer on masonite
30 x 48 inches/76 x 122 cm
Estate of Don and Joan
Gilbert Martin
La Luna, 1984, lacquer on masonite
24 x 24 inches/61 x 61 cm
Estate of Don and Joan Gilbert Martin
24 x 24 inches/61 x 61 cm
Estate of Don and Joan Gilbert Martin
El Sol, 1987, lacquer on masonite
30 x 30 inches/76 x 76 cm
Private Collection
El Teatro, 1987, lacquer on masonite
43 x 43 inches/109 x 109 cmEstate of Don and Joan
Gilbert Martin
Flying Spirit #4 - Fire on the Mountain, 1987, lacquer on masonite
48 x 48 inches/122 x 122 cm
Collection of Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art, Logan, UT
48 x 48 inches/122 x 122 cm
Collection of Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art, Logan, UT
(photos of art work: Tony Grant © 2017, Rick Pharaoh © 2017, Joan Gilbert Martin)