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Lu Martin
Born in 1941 in Manchester, New Hampshire, Lucille Martin was inspired at a very early age by the joyful moments spent with her father as he drew pictures with her. Besides art, Lu grew passionate for science and teaching. After graduating Notre Dame College (Manchester, NH) she decided to teach at the third grade level. She thoroughly enjoyed teaching because of her love for children and her ability to utilize her artistic talents. After leaving her classroom to raise her family she began painting more seriously. She studied extensively under renowned artists Oscar Durand of Manchester and Helen Van Wyk of Rockport, Massachusetts. She progressed quickly and soon became known throughout New England for her old world, chiaroscuro style still-life paintings.
Lu Martin has been very active as art educator, lecturer, promoter, consultant and juror. She has held positions as Fine Arts Chair for the New Hampshire Commission for the Arts and the Manchester Commission for the Arts. She was President of the Manchester Artists’ Association and President and Founder of THE Art Group of New Hampshire. She established the Art in Prison program in New Hampshire which brought art instruction and materials to inmates. Martin’s art association affiliations are many, including The American Artist Professional League, New York, The Copley Society of Boston and the Boston Visual Artists’ Union. She has exhibited at the Currier Art Museum and the Manchester Institute of Arts and Sciences in Manchester, NH. Throughout her career, Lu has exhibited in over fifteen fine art galleries as well as numerous group shows, mostly in New England.
When Lu Martin and family moved to southern California in 1984, Lu entered the art scene in Laguna Beach. She exhibited in a few galleries and managed a couple galleries as well. Then in 1988 she opened the doors to Lu Martin Galleries in Laguna Beach where she has promoted scores of fine artists, including herself. Lu made her international debut in 2002 when she visited Japan for a three-city, one-woman show.
Lu’s life revolves around art. Her passion is for painting the still-life, though she occasionally paints landscape, seascape and abstract paintings. Lu paints from the heart, in the style of Romantic Realism. Her subjects are often objects found in the home, such as fruits and vegetables, old copper pots, wine bottles, old books, antiques, teddy bears and, of course, flowers. She also enjoys painting commissions involving one’s own personal objects or heirlooms as props.