Emerging Artists | Nicolas Martin

Day or night, chasing light

Nicolas Martin, The Sink, oil, 9 x 12.

This story was featured in the April 2016 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art April 2016 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.

IN 1999, after graduating from the Auguste Renoir High School in Paris, artist Nicolas Martin took a bold step. Instead of continuing on to a college art program in his native France like his friends, Martin bought a one-way plane ticket to Canada. “I was supposed to go right, but I chose left,” he says. “I wanted to find my own path.”

These days he lives in a small village close to a river outside of Montreal. Last year Martin’s work appeared in the United States for the first time as a finalist in the International Art Renewal Center Salon as well as in the Urban Life show at Abend Gallery in Denver. NIGHTWALK, which was on view in the Denver show, is a quintessential Martin work. The moody nocturne features a solitary figure walking in a deserted urban area illuminated by street lamps. “I like to paint moments of thinking, waiting, and walking,” Martin says. “If I paint a crowd, I will put the focus on one unique person. I think it has something to do with taking a different path. It’s a metaphor that can be found in many of my paintings.”

Nicolas Martin, Before the Storm, oil, 24 x 36.

Martin admits he is also obsessed with capturing light, describing himself as a hunter of light. For inspiration he walks the streets of Montreal at night, chasing intriguing light sources while the city sleeps. Meanwhile his interior scenes are often devoid of humans, featuring kitchens, stairwells, bedrooms, bathrooms, and restaurant dining rooms. One of his favorite places to paint is an old colonial house in the middle of nowhere. “I can take the time to paint every angle, every room, every moment of the day without being interrupted or distracted,” he says. “Places where I have the most freedom are my favorites.”

About his transatlantic move, he has no regrets. “My roots are in France, but I feel great on the other side of the ocean. I found what I was looking for—a different atmosphere, rhythm, pace, and a big sense of freedom.” —Bonnie Gangelhoff

representation
Abend Gallery, Denver, CO; Oxholm Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark; L’Oeil du Prince Galerie, Paris, France.

Featured in the April 2016 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art April 2016 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.