Artist's Statement

The development of my art over the last 33 years has required that I find solutions to creative challenges. Through the early years I used only traditional gilding techniques (gesso, clay and wood substructures), but adhering to the status quo threatened to stifle my creative vision. Instead, I challenged tradition by developing new techniques, resulting in what some have referred to as "The School of Marty."

I conceived and produced my first gilded artwork in 1970. From that point forward, I was committed to both the material and to the simple elegance of the minimalist form. In 1989 I rediscovered the ancient technique of water gilding ultra-smooth surfaces with sturgeon glue. This technique allowed me to change my substrate (base material), enabling me to break through the barriers to artistic expansion in this vein of work. In the 1990s I moved my art into three dimensions, literally coming off the wall with spheres, saucers and found objects.

I continue to expand boundaries. In my 2002 show, I was able to bend and manipulate bronze, commanding an ultra-smooth but molten form to gild. The combination of the movement of the leaf on the surface and the warmth of the bronze beneath gives the work a solidity that I've never before reached. My palette has journeyed into variations of karat leaf on ever-changing surfaces. As a result, I envision the physical levitation of my work in the future. The possibilities inherent in this recent evolution excite me.