Steve Martin
Artist Steve Martin’s adventurous spirit, and zest for life comes from a vast pool of spirited ancestors, including bold and daring frontiersmen who were associated with the likes of Andrew Jackson, and Jim Bowie of Alamo fame. Also wading in the gene pool is the talented 19th century architect David Weeks, who is credited with designing a large number of the antebellum mansions along the banks of the Mississippi River and its Delta.
Born in the rural Louisiana town of Tioga, where his family established the first saw mill over two hundred years ago, Martin was encouraged by his parents to develop his artistic talents. Completely self taught, Martin received formal recognition and art awards throughout his childhood and teenage years, his first at the early age of five. Despite the praise of his peers, Martin became disillusioned with the academic art world. Martin then set aside his dream to be an artist for seventeen years to pursue a career as a financial advisor. In March of 1993, a drawing of a clown by Martin’s oldest son, Christian, rekindled his own artistic flame. Steve decided to branch out beyond stocks and bonds to resurrect his artistic vision and attain his initial goal of becoming an artist.
Showing regularly at respected galleries across the country, Martin’s work is now represented in over one thousand corporate, private and museum collections around the world. Through the confidence gained from his repeated sell-out shows, Steve has opened two locations of Steve Martin Studio/Gallery dedicated not only to his own works, but to the works of over fifteen internationally acclaimed artists.
Martin completely abandons the straight-line theory in his artwork. Instead he uses a continuous line to explore the inexhaustible possibilities of figurative representation. These sensual exaggerations also express Martin’s feelings of what art is. “Today we are under a visual assault from all sorts of disturbing images. I feel that art should uplift the soul and elevate the spirit. This is my message and I use the human form as my messenger.” – Steve Martin