Movimento Stoico

Movimento Stoico

Paintings & Photographs by Emma Martin (’23)

OCTOBER 24 – NOVEMBER 11, 2022

stArt.rv (Reynolda Village)

“During my travels abroad, I was immersed in a diverse array of art from Renaissance altarpieces to contemporary installations. Sculpture specifically drew me in. I encountered these sculptures in a range of contexts: museums, gardens, homes, churches and in front of historical sites. I felt inspired by the rich emotions and challenges that the stories of Europe told, and I wanted to artistically explore how to address sculptural representations of these stories; they possess an overwhelming power for narration, but form, presence and embodiment are even more important to me. Before we know their respective narratives, if we ever learn them, we encounter these sculptural forms.”

“Often moments of tragedy are erected in stone such as marble, but these materials, while communicating great artistic skill and wealth of the commissioner, unsurprisingly emanate a stoic quality. My work, Pieta is a painted representation of Michelangelo’s Pieta in Florence, and it aims to capture the grief of the Madonna following the crucifixion of Christ. I portray the scene in a gestural style to capture the rush of emotions that the subjects must have been feeling.”

“The paintings of the Academia and Uffizi Galleries entertained my eye with vibrant colors. These colors often add more meaning to the pieces through symbolism of wealth, regality, purity and holiness. Marble or stone as materials limited the sculptor’s palette to neutral tones. While I depend on these tones in many pieces, I explore how the painter’s use of color can meet the sculptor’s use of form and storytelling. My painting Bronze Boar: Patron of Firenze leans into a vibrant color palette of greens, yellows and blues with the complementary addition of pink in the background. I used green to symbolize the prosperity associated with the market where it resides as well as its legend.”

“I created a series of photographs that enter into a dialogue with the rest of the body of work. The goal of these photos is to manipulate light, value and form to interpret the stories told by forms and structures by means that allow for various readings of stories and their messages. My photograph Arena depicts the Colosseum in Verona, Italy. This structure alludes to stories of strength within the Roman Empire, but also stories of tension and violence. It served as a place of entertainment. These historical connotations juxtapose the presence of tourists throughout the Colosseum in the photograph.”