SHARPE-WALENTAS STUDIO PROGRAM, BRooklyn, NY

Studio Visit: Martha Tuttle

After visiting Derek Fordjour's studio at the Sharpe-Walentas Studio Program yesterday, we ran 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; briefly questioned 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.

02.28.18