Julia C. Martin is an Arizona-based photographic artist whose work deals with the themes of mortality, ephemerality, and time. Many of her prints are made by hand using historical or experimental processes.
Julia C. Martin is a photographic artist whose work deals with the themes of mortality, ephemerality, and time. Many of her prints are made by hand using historical or experimental processes.
“In the land I see time. It changes and evolves slowly, gradually. Things remain the same for years, centuries; yet there are moments of ephemerality. Working in the desert grasslands of Southern Arizona, I become innately aware of the cycles of life and death surrounding me. With each breath, I become aware of my own mortality.
I photograph the land to reveal the inherent beauty of these subtle moments of ephemera. I also explore my own relationship with the land. Being in this place of life, death, and rebirth, I long to be a part of that cycle. When I die, I want my body to become part of the earth, to grow new life. To become a part of the whole.
My work is tactile and delicate. I use elements of grass in the work and every piece is meant to give a sense of the place. The pieces have movement and the passing of a body breathes life into them, as the wind gives the grasses life. The tactility in the work is reminiscent of the tactility of the land. I want to immerse myself fully into the land through the process of making.”
Originally from Golden, Colorado, Martin received her MFA from Arizona State University and her BA from Montana State University. She has worked at institutions such as the Santa Fe Photographic Workshops and Aperture Foundation. She has exhibited nationally and has had work published in The Hand Magazine and Cyanotype: The Blueprint in Contemporary Practice by Christina Z. Anderson. In 2020, she received an honorable mention from the Julia Margaret Cameron Award.
Phoenix, AZ | juliacmartin.com | @juliacmartin
