STUDIO VISIT: Martha Tuttle

After visiting Derek Fordjour at the Sharpe-Walentas Studios yesterday, Derek and I run into an artist who was making their way to a sink to wash off a brush. In a quick exchange, Derek introduces her but I don't catch her name. "Here is another up and coming artist" is all hear. I asked if I could visit her studio, and serendipitously end up having another great visit.

We talked about the sensitivity with which she uses silk, wool, coal, iron, paper, clay, and other materials; and pondered over the question: at what scale is intimacy lost or gained? It's not so fixed, is it?

We talked about biography; an artist's personal history and relationship to materials; and briefly questioned and acknowledged the agency of abstraction in today's increasingly tumultuous world. All of this happened, without knowing each other's names, just from looking at the work. It was only until I asked if I could take a picture, and exchange contacts, did I learn I was speaking with Martha Tuttle. With the pink sticky note she gave me in hand, it all made sense and I gave her a hug.

Thanks to Derek Fordjour and Martha Tuttle for incredibly inspiring visits yesterday. Martha Tuttle currently has a solo show at Tilton Gallery which runs through March 10th.

—Steve Rivera

02.28.18