Maria S. Martin

Lawrence, KS

Maria S. Martin has called Lawrence, Kansas home since 1984. She is the current president of the Lawrence Art Guild, and she has been a champion for the local art scene for many years. Martin’s permanent showcase of work is located at her home studio and gallery, Creative Mass Gallery, in downtown Lawrence.

Martin draws artistic inspiration from travel and nature, but the foundation of her vision and technical skill began forming at age four in Philadelphia, painting murals in private homes with her father. Martin attributes her artist father, Joseph F. Maida, as her greatest instructor and mentor. She was his loyal shadow and companion.

“I remember the visits to parks to sketch or paint,” Martin said. “He was prolific, always drawing, sketching, painting until his last day when our morning phone talk was about a new sketch he started.”

Martin creates her art with the intention to take viewers on mental adventures. Martin combines texture, surface treatment and color to provoke viewers' own unique memories with works based on her personal recollections.

“As the artist, the unpredictability and sense of discovery is very exciting, and one of the reasons why I do what I do,” Martin said. “My ultimate goal is to create a work that engages the viewer and takes them on their journey.”

Martin is partial to mixed media art, acrylic paintings, and collages. The thoughtful layering of different materials makes her work endlessly explorable and dynamic. Look long enough at her pieces and you may catch her use of handmade paper, or the distinct textures derived from acrylic paint on malleable mediums.

“With a collage painting, the things that inspire me begin to form the backgrounds within my windows, and the windows tell the story,” Martin said. “I allow my intuition to guide me as I build up the layers and the painting.”

You can find Maria’s exhibit in the Upper West Gallery of the Phoenix Gallery.