Mr. Martinez was born in Colombia, S.A. Growing up in Bogota, he studied and worked as an architect until he relocated to the United States where he currently resides. As a self-taught painter, Martinez is inspired by the work of Pablo Picasso, Francis Bacon and Fernando Botero. His paintings have been distinguished for the best in figurative art and abstract concepts, a familiar trait in his approach that has enriched the development of his work. Antonio began painting in 1995 but he began to draw when he was 5 years old and has been wholly immersed and dedicated to his work ever since. The techniques which Antonio methodically and masterfully imposes upon the viewer are born from a personal study of artistic currents of popular tradition. For example, his use of flat colors and the absence of the lineal perspective, are some of the elements evident in the popular art of Colombia. His landscapes are deeply rooted in his native country and his figurative pieces are reminders of everyday Colombian social conditions. As a result his portrayal of sorrow and hope are transformed into works that tell a story. Apparent in the diversity of his landscapes and figures, is an organic quality that he calls “natural shapes” and the more you study his paintings one cannot help to notice the dream-like mood that is set forth by the composition of the flora, countryside and other objects which he illustrates in each one. Martinez engages the viewer to experience some of the dramatic social situations suggestive in the lives of the “town folk” back home. Simplicity lives within his paintings and a call to the primitive thrives in his work.
