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Artist Juliet Martin





Juliet Martin knows anxiety better than anyone.


She has a BA in Visual Art from Brown University and an MFA in Computer Art from the School of Visual Arts. For the past fifteen years she has been a part of the fiber community, her solo shows including Ivy Brown Gallery, New York City; Chashama, New York City; Living Room, St. Peter’s Church, New York City; Garrison Art Center, Garrison, NY; Artworks Gallery, Trenton, NJ; and Saori Kaikan Gallery, Osaka, Japan; as well as residencies at MASS MoCA and in Japan.


Her work has been reviewed in the New York Times and she was named one of the “Women Artists to Watch” by Artsy. She is a member of 440 Gallery in Brooklyn. She lives and weaves in Brooklyn.





"I wake up. After coffee and an Ativan, my anxiety becomes my inspiration. The next step is humor. Good morning, Brooklyn. My jokes are not the riddles you were told as a child. I start the day by creating work where my insides become my outsides. This dichotomy, that contrast, defines what language cannot convey alone. I make works out of my moods so you can see yours. Irony is embedded in materials, and humor is form. Drawings compress pain and joy into an instant, faster than words. My work surfaces in the moment where sorrow embraces laughter. I cut fiber boards into abstract shapes to arc away from the conventional neutrality of the rectangle. Onto shaped surfaces I layer hand-woven fabric, digitally manipulated block prints, acrylic paint, and, at times, even glitter (turquoise is especially nice). This collision of materials exaggerates and complicates the message, amplifying the tension between playfulness and despair. I turn craft into art and nightmares into fables. This is not confession but communion, when you look and see yourself. You will find yourself in my work."




Tell us a little about yourself (where you are from) and your background in the arts.

I grew up in New Jersey in a pretty conservative town and I think I survived because of the arts. My kindergarten report card said, “Julie can draw a straight line to a 1/16th of an inch, but she falls down a lot.” I’ve tried a lot of mediums.


For my graduate work I did a lot of computer programming, primarily web-based interactive art. That fusion of technology with art was a huge influence. Now, for the past 15 years I’ve been weaving and working in mixed media. While my end products are very different, my use of the computer is still important.


What kind of work are you currently making?

My current collection, “Pretty Little Insects,” combines handwoven fabric made with machine-made and handspun yarn, metallic paint, black-and-white illustrations of insects (dragonflies are the best), and block prints whose colors are chosen from the weaving palette.


The illustrations and block prints are combined and edited digitally. I then collage these elements on abstract flowing shapes cut out of Masonite. Why insects? I’m not sure yet. Right now their creepiness appeals to me. Can I see that in myself? With any new project it can be months before I figure out what my brain is trying to say to me.


What is a day like in the studio for you?

I survive best when I have a structure. I wake up and watch clips of bad TV until my spouse wakes. After we drink too much coffee, I make my way to the couch to read art catalogs or theory for 20 minutes. Then I flex my drawing muscles. Each new sketchbook gets a theme. I draw that theme every day until the journal’s full. This isolates creation as an act of pure mark making.


I don’t think about what to draw or why, I just draw for the sake of drawing. The rest of my day I jump into printmaking, painting, weaving, and digital imaging, and using my dremel table saw (my love!).


What are you looking at right now and/or reading?

I’m reading the book “Hand+Made, the Performative Impulse in Art and Craft.” It looks at the act of performance that exists in the making of a “craft.”


So much of what is considered to be craft is directly dependent on the process as well as the product. Think of weaving as a noun and verb.


Where can we find more of your work? (ex. website/insta/gallery/upcoming shows)


On my refrigerator🙂. Also, my website just had a makeover to give you a look at my collections, installations, and printmaking. I think of my IG account as my digital business card – you always get a good sense of what I’m playing with. I am having a solo show at 198 Gallery, in Brooklyn, July 30 - August 13. I am also a very happy member of the 440 Gallery in Brooklyn.














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