Contemporary
Sculpture
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“I have a passion for objects. I use objects surrounding me as I choose words in a dictionary for expressing myself”
— Martine Allard
Martine Allard creates compelling contemporary sculptures that evoke the significance of the women’s psychosocial environment. With expert versatility, she pursues timeless themes with personal and universal relevance. Topics such as breast cancer, motherhood, and the influence of social media, culture, and science fiction comprise her prolific portfolio. As a trained psychologist she brings a depth of understanding and insight about the multi-faceted human experience.
Martine juxtaposes reclaimed items with a unique aesthetic vision and proficient respect to color, design, texture, and composition. She transforms female forms into new symbolic identities by incorporating functional lamps, bicycle parts, computer keyboards, metal, glass, plastic, jewelry, collage, and feathers that resonate unique characteristics and history. In her hands they become artistic elements that fuse familiarity with the surreal and engage the viewer with endless exploration and interpretation. Importantly, as an artist using manufactured pieces destined to landfills, Martine is contributing to environmental preservation and positive change.
Her robust portfolio is comprised of four distinctive series which she works on concurrently. Her “Fembots” are engaging narratives that portray the female science fiction persona, with lively patterns, symbols, and the colors of metal. For her simplified and whimsical “Totems” series, we discover references to African culture. Martine’s colorful “Pop Art” series is reminiscent of imagery from Warhol and Rauschenberg, using recycled comics books and resin on polystyrene. For her impactful and exquisite “Alter Egos” series, she integrates delicate-colored broken pieces of porcelain, picassiette style mosaic, glass and jewelry on fiberglass. This emotive series reveals her personal experience with breast cancer.
Martine’s superb sculpture “Hide This Breast That I Cannot Look At” from her “Alter Egos” series caught my attention, and I selected it for “The Healing Power of ART: Resilience” juried exhibition. I was immediately captivated by how she approached a sensitive topic with innovation, vulnerability, and empathy. It is a profound reflection of courage and resilience and statement about the healing power of art.
Renee Phillips, Director and Curator, Manhattan Arts International, New York, NY.,USA
