CHATS ET COLIBRIS
oil on canvas
30 x 40 in.
framed
$2,550

LE DÉFILÉ
oil on canvas
30 x 40 in.
framed
$2,550

Raymond Martin is a child psychologist and self-taught painter. He was born in 1958 at Lac-a-la-Croix, Lac-Saint-Jean, Québec and has called Moncton home for more than 20 years.

"Raymond Martin transposes the beauty and wonder of the world into remarkable paintings of simplified outlines and flattened views that resonate as material analogues for the unconscious, the mythical and the spiritual. Incised lines in thick impasto lead us along circuitous paths and decorative labyrinthe patterns into a nonlineal, transpersonal 'Dream Time'.

As an expression of the spontaneous, intuitive self, of the awakening child within, Martin's art may be linked to the history of 'childlike' works by 20th century artists like Picasso, Klee and Dubuffet. Within the Moncton Acadian art scene, his work shares affinities with the ebullient 'Neo-folk' paintings of Yvon Gallant, Nancy Morin and Francis Coutellier. Integrating a deep awareness of the psychological power and magic of children's drawings, his enchanted vision poetically melds the Cartesian split between inner human consciousness and the objective reality of the world outside." (excerpts from the essay "The Enchanted Vision of Raymond Martin" by Terry Graff, January 1994)

Raymond's paintings are found in important public collections, including the Canada Council Art Bank, Foreign Affairs Canada, the New Brunswick Art Bank and the Beaverbrook Art Gallery collection, as well as corporate and private collections. He has exhibited in many solo and group exhibitions since 1985.

ARTIST STATEMENT:

"These works evoke the different states in which each was created, stemming from a recollection, an anecdote, a whimsical delirium or all of these combined.

The human being is represented alone, in relationship with an object, sowing, transforming or creating it, in a determined geographical location. The content emphasizes the internal dynamics within the individual, with a view to introspection."