Exhibitions Available Artwork History Submissions Contact Press
Martha Whittington Nonpareils January 9 - February 28, 2009
Nonpareils
Martha Whittington, Vortex, sewn paper, rayon thread, 2008.
Martha Whittington, Nonpareils, cut paper, 2008.
Martha Whittington, Nonpareils Split, cut paper, enamel paint , 2008.
Martha Whittington, Red Vortex, aluminum, nylon cord, 2008.
Martha Whittington, Red Vortex set of 3, aluminum, rayon, motor, 2008.
Martha Whittington, Nonpareils, sewn naugahyde, 2008.
The floor acts as a typographic map recreating our melting ice caps as cyclones hypnotically, both beautiful in nature and symbolic of planetary destruction. Man, a great creator as well as an unequaled destroyer, views the terrain from a superior position, almost as a god. An ambiguity in impression is of destruction (melting, vacuity) or of reconstruction (protection, reconstitution).
The sculptural elements are minimal geometric archetypes constructed of synthetic materials: naugahyde, nylon parachute cord. The paper works, symbolic cut out shapes, reflect the vortex and at the same time, the ice caps.
Artist Statement
My sculpture addresses the human experience, whether life and labor, disease and/or death.
I use site specific installations to construct an environment or atmosphere for the viewer to
observe and experience physically and emotionally. In this created environment, illusions and
apparitions, something seen out of the corner of the eye and then not seen, act as a milieu for
my kinetic works.
I employ light, shadow and reflection as object to create a perceptual shift from direct conscious
viewing to subtle, unconscious experience. Neutral shades of black, white and gray reference
the Renaissance technique of Chiaroscuro and strengthen this perceptual shift.
The sounds produced by the kinetic works reinforce the idea of the un-seen, creating an uncertain
tempo and a recurring aural or visual signal. The sound could be a metronome used to mark
time or an antique industrial machine run by the ghost of the laborer.
The environment created appears monastic: simple and sometimes fragile. The installations
I create have a brief existence and are rarely ever reproduced after their showing. A still image,
a memory, a recalled emotion is all that remains.
Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, PA
Master of Fine Arts in Sculpture
Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, MO
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture
January 2009
C.Emerson Fine Arts
Saint Petersburg , Florida
Solo Show
Forthcoming
Late Summer 2009
SCA Contemporary Art
Albuquerque , NM
Solo show
Summer 2008 City of Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs Public Art Project
A (new) Genre Landscape
March 2008 Studio Plex, Atlanta, GA
Extracted Examined
September 2007 Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville
Jacksonville , Florida
Solo Show
June 2007 Emory University Gallery
Solo Show Dowsing
January 2007 Museum of Contemporary Art Georgia, Atlanta, GA
Installations
October 2006 Eyedrum, Atlanta, GA
Solo Show Three Fold
March 2006 GALLERY twenty-four, Berlin, Germany
TransATLantic
October 2005 Dalton Gallery at Agnes Scott College, Decatur, GA
Limbs, Heart, Tongue & Teeth
September 2005 Louisiana Tech, Ruston, Louisiana
Solo Show
June 2005 Austin Green Temporary Public Art Project,
Austin Texas
T emporary Land Drawing
January 2005 Spruill Gallery, Atlanta, GA
Rufusing to Dance Backwards
September 2004 UGA Main Gallery, Athens, GA
Solo Show PITCH
May 2004 The B Complex, Atlanta, GA
Salon of Sensations
April 2004 Eyedrum, Atlanta, GA
Conversations with Contemporary Figure
The Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, Atlanta, GA
“So Atlanta”
February 2001 Barbara Archer Gallery, Atlanta, GA
Seen and Heard, Estrofest
September 1996 Gallery Rebolloso, Minneapolis, MN
Kane, Perkins, and Whittington
April 1994 Tyler Gallery, Elkins Park, PA
Bruns and Whittington
November 1995 ARIA Last Friday Project
Philadelphia , PA
Jones and Whittington
July 1993 Gallery Rebolloso, Minneapolis, MN
Peterson and Whittington
June 1992 Tough Gallery, Chicago, IL
FLOORED (integration of floor in sculpture)
October 2006 Artist Project Grant
City of Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs
Atlanta , GA
May 2004 Best in Show
Decatur Arts Festival, Fine Arts Exhibition, Decatur, GA
March 1992 Six-month residency, Alternative Worksite,
Bemis Foundation, Omaha, NE
PUBLICATIONS
June 21, 2007 Cullum, Jerry “Visual Arts”
Atlanta Journal Constitution Atlanta, GA
May/June 2007 McClintock, Diana
Reviews Southeast “ Atlanta, GA”
Art Papers Atlanta, GA .56
January 31, 2007
Feaster, Felicia “Visual Arts”
Creative Loafing Atlanta, GA
November 12, 2006 Cullum, Jerry “Visual Arts”
Atlanta Journal Constitution Atlanta, GA .K31
October 23. 2005 Blum Leonard, Pamela “Arts & Books”
Atlanta Journal Constitution Atlanta, GA .K12
Sept/Oct 2004 Oppenheim, Phil
Reviews Southeast “ Atlanta, GA”
Art Papers Atlanta, GA .40
June 27. 2004 Gorell, Kristin and Puttgen, Julie
“Wandering the Dickless Realm”
Ratsalad Deluxe Atlanta, GA .1
June 3. 2004 Fox, Catherine “Vizarts”
Atlanta Journal Constitution Atlanta, GA .32
May 1. 2004 Gorell, Kristin and Puttgen, Julie “Panoptic Galleriac Odyssey” Ratsalad Deluxe Atlanta, GA .1-2 |
|
April 16. 2004 Cullum, Jerry. “Visual Arts.”
Atlanta Journal Constitution Atlanta, GA .M3
Winter+Spring 1994 "A Journal of Gay and Lesbian
Literature." Evergreen Chronicles Minneapolis, MN
cover,90,91,92
April 8. 1993 Hillbert, Jessica. "Art." Temple News
Philadelphia , PA .6
November 1992 Stevens, Mitchell. " Chicago." New Art
Examiner Chicago, IL .31
June 26. 1992 MacMillian, Kyle. "Critic Choice." Omaha World Herald Omaha, NE .37
June 1992 Bemis Gallery, Exhibition Catalogue Omaha, NE Curatorial statement,10,11
May 1991 Laguna Gloria Art Museum, Exhibition Catalogue
Austin , TX , Introduction,10
February 17. 1991 Caruso, Laura. "Art Journal." Kansas City
Star Kansas City, MO .I-3
July 30. 1989 Hoffmann, Donald. "Sculptures Save Haphazard
Show." Kansas City Star Kansas City, MO .4-D
site content ©2009 C.Emerson Fine Arts 909 Central Avenue Saint Petersburg, Florida 33705 727-898-6068