Regional painter, Holly Ballard Martz paints thoughtful and lyrical landscapes with messages in collage and iconography. These landscapes revolve around , trees, birds and structures that are juxtapositioned in interesting and thoughtful placement. New to the gallery, Ballard will easily be a quick favorite as her career begins to expand.
My paintings are about finding direction and navigating through life. There seem to be instructions for almost every imaginable action– twist cap, pull tab, shake well – but not for the myriad, complex choices we all must make in our daily endeavors. I am interested in the methods people use to find their path in life, be it fortunes or faith, science or chance, and I employ these elements and ideas in my work. I am particularly drawn to items that provide direction, such as diagrams, dressmakers’ patterns, equations, arrows, and targets.
Language and text play an integral part in my work. I am fascinated by the power of words, spoken and unspoken. Contrary to the old adage “words can never hurt me,” I believe that words can carry formidable weight and that the words omitted can carry as much weight as the words given breath. The addition of text to my paintings is not intended to clarify. I see it as a means to foster new insights – an invitation to participate in discovery.
My current body of work has evolved from the depth and layering of collage. I attempt to match that depth in my paintings by creating layers of imagery, text, and meaning. I like to depict ordinary objects in unexpected ways, with the intent of thought-provoking playfulness. My paintings do not presume to be about finding “the meaning of life,” but about each of us attempting to find meaning in our own lives.
