Caryn Martin Tomorrow's Storm (Redux), 2023
Monotypes on tracing paper, ink
Dimensions variable
Presented by Catalyst Contemporary, Booth D13
Caryn Martin builds large-scale monotype installations that reference atmospheric conditions, bodies of water, and other elements of nature. Fragile and provisional, these compilations of ink prints speak to the tenuous state of the environment.
Tomorrow’s Storm (Redux), a site-specific installation at Art on Paper, is informed by a fear of future storms and the emotional impact of our climate’s unpredictability. The abstract marks on these monotypes conjure images of waves, geological forms, rain, and cloud formations. The translucent paper becomes a stand-in for atmosphere—an atmosphere that is peeling away from its own substrate. The subtle hue in the inner layers is a nod to the idiom: “red sky in the morning, sailors take warning.”
The first version of this piece, displayed at the 2023 Baltimore Fine Art Print Fair, utilized shifting window light to highlight the translucency of the prints. This iteration at Art on Paper explores the sculptural qualities of paper, thus adding a sense of movement and visual weight.
Ultimately, Martin’s aim is to repurpose her prints and materials, allowing one piece to fuel the next.
Caryn Martin, a Maryland-based artist and educator, was a 2022 Finalist for the Trawick Contemporary Art Awards. She received MAT and MFA degrees from Maryland Institute College of Art and has shown her work in various regional and national venues. In recent years, she has participated in residencies at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, ACI Residency in Italy, and at Windy Mowing in Vermont. This fall she will be in residence at VCCA’s Moulin à Nef studio center in Auvillar, France, making work along the Garonne River. In January 2024, her work will be exhibited in a two-person show at Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland.