Nancy Martini – As a graduate from the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale with a degree in Advertising Design in 1983, my plan was to work as a graphic designer why pursuing my love of the fine arts without starving. Currently, I work as an Art Director for Paula Black and Associates in Coconut Grove. My journey has been long, but steady. Now that my three children are getting older I am finally finding more time to devote to art. My current body of work expresses my love for environment and community. I use 95% reclaimed materials most of which are found in my recycle bin. I love to create beauty out of materials most people can’t wait to toss aside and get rid of. When people see my art, they don’t necessary understand what they are looking at. A lot of times I have to point out what the pieces are for them to really understand that the trash they threw away yesterday can be upcycled instead of thrown away or recycled.

Since the early 1990’s, my work has always included the experimentation of materials. Whether it is fused glass, print making, textiles, metals or traditional painting methods, I love to explore new techniques and processes.  Because I have worked in so many different mediums, I discovered that some of the materials made especially for artists are very similar to the materials thrown away or tossed in the
recycle bin.

I love all aspects of nature and feel very connected to the earth. Trash is something that really bothers me and after feeling very frustrated by the amount of packaging in my recycle bin one day, I started cleaning and sorting like materials. I didn’t know what I was going to do with all the trash I was collecting. I just knew I had to do something. I realized that collecting the trash was not going to make a great impact in helping our environment, but it was a place to start.

Everyone kept asking me, “why are you collecting all this stuff?” and telling me, “a lot of this can just be recycled; it’s not our responsibility.” “I am not always sure where I am going with a project”, I told them “I just know I have to do it”. So, I continued to fill container after container with sorted bottle caps, plastic tops, plastic pieces, etc. I just knew I couldn’t add any more to our already threaten environment. However small, it was my way of doing something. After much experimentation, the bits and pieces intuitively lead from my kitchen to my current body of work called: “Lessons from the Dinner Table.”

A lot of my work expresses the things I can’t articulate in words. It is sort of like when someone tries to translate an expression from a language you don’t know. Most of the messages created through my art are for my children. I usually don’t tell them what the painting means, I let them figure it out on their own. They may not remember my words, but the painting will be there to remind them.

The pieces in the collection, “Lessons from the Dinner Table” are all about the simple lessons learned and discussed around the dinner table and how it transcends into the basic foundation of how to treat each other, our community and our environment. For example: one piece titled, “Invite Peace to the Table” explores the importance of having peace present during opposition in order to grow and to create change. As you can imagine, with three children at my table, peace has to be reinstated from time to time.

All of the pieces in this collection are made from 95% reclaimed materials. The ideas and inspiration for my paintings all come from the people who surround me. My studio is attached to my kitchen in the center of my home where children and laughter can and happily run through. My work will continue to evolve as I discover and learn thankfully from all the people I meet who graciously share their ideas with me. I hope that my work inspires you to engage in collaborative creative discussions about how to make our community and our environment a better place.

Exhibits and Collections

2009 – In progress, Lessons from the Dinner Table; Mixed Media

The pieces in the collection, “Lessons from the Dinner Table” are all about the simple lessons learned and discussed around the dinner table and how it transcends into the basic foundation of how to treat each other, our community and our environment. All of the art is made from 95% reclaimed materials.

January 2010 – Art House, Atlanta, GA “The Sketchbook Collection”; Watercolor and pencil

The exhibit will include my sketchbook about the environment themed: “The End of the World.” It is a lighthearted, yet with serious undertones, look at where the Earth’s last days could take place.

My sketchbook along with other artists from around the world will tour the United States this January starting in Atlanta.

March 2010 – Brooklyn Art Library, Brooklyn, NY; The Space Between; Mixed Media
Small works: Exploring the small spaces between us, what keeps us apart and what pulls us together.

April 2010 – Traveling Exhibit, NY; Self Portrait Exhibition, Mixed Media
A look within: visual representations of who I am.

June 2010 – Seattle, WA, The Scavenger Project; Mixed Media

An international scavenger hunt where I am interpreting items from a list that has been given to other artists. The collection of pieces will then be documented in a hard cover book and exhibited in Seattle and New York.