Ginit Marten
Natick, MA
In still life and in landscape work, Ginit seeks a dramatic viewpoint, a unique lighting contrast, and interesting color and value relationships. A moment featuring shadows, reflections or pattern is particularly inviting — sometimes this is a situation with bright back-lighting, such as sunlight in the background or the bright window behind a still life.
The objects in a still life might be quiet and domestic, but the painting wants to be more assertive. Objects are enlarged partly for that purpose, but also in order to allow more detail and exaggeration in the reflections and refractions which are a major interest.
Some still life objects are chosen for their transparency, pattern, and color. But the objects also represent aspects of personal history: glassware belonging to a grandmother, fabrics selected on trips, postcards from museum visits.
Ginit enjoys the portability and delicacy of watercolor, but has recently been working in acrylic paint which allows more layering of paint, and also more development back and forth between light and dark values, and differing colors.
Ginit Marten grew up in New York State, and earned an MFA in painting at Washington University School of Fine Arts, St. Louis. She now lives in Natick, MA.