I met Al Martinez through a Facebook page for Aspiring Metalsmiths.I love the page, as it is full of people sharing ideas and pictures of their work. Mr. Martinez shares pictures of what he is working on as well as the tools he uses, and the processes he has found work for him. That is one of the things that drew me to him. That he shares willingly to help out people that are just starting out, and that means a lot. His love for metal work shows in his attitude and willingness to discuss how and why he does his work. 
Al was kind enough to submit to my questioning and provided me with enough information that I felt like I knew him personally... but... I really want to spend some time in his workroom. Watching, and learning.
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| Jellyfish by Al Martinez |
Al also makes sculptures that are whimsical and lighthearted. This is a Jellyfish. I would love to have an ocean of them in my yard, or hanging in my bath.
In 1973, Al took a class in jewelry making at a local Junior College, and has been working with metal ever since. He got into black smiting in the late 80s and has been hooked since.
Though the men he learned from were professionals, he says that it wasn't formal training.He learned from Metalsmiths of which Some were industrial black smiths and some artist with sculptural skills.
Al
took a class from Karen Olsen Ramsey that taught him to refine his
skills but he is mostly an "explorer of processes" and that usually he
researches and experiments and he learns from the results. 
I really got interested in Al Martinez' work when I saw him using a bowling ball as the form for his Repoussé/ chasing work. I had to say Wow! I thought I was mistaken on what it was... enlarged the picture... and yep, there it was... a bowling ball! He says he mounts it on wood so it will stay steady, and drills into it at an angle, so that the hotglue he uses as "pitch" has somewhere to go to hold onto the ball... I had never heard of using hot glue to work on... I had to give it a try, and though mine was ok, it will take a while for me to learn enough to post a picture of my work!
Another area that caught my eye in Al Martinez' work is his "leaves". He is working on a challenge to make a leaf a day for a year... He has Ginkgo leaves, Maple leaves, Oak leaves, Steampunk leaves, stylized leaves, riveted, wired, and textured... He's on 263 so far, and seems he will not run out of ideas anytime soon. I asked what he would do with them when he is finished, he says that they will go on display in a gallery.
I asked also why he liked working with metal and he said,
"I really enjoy exploring
new techniques and creating different designs. I find pushing the limits of
what you know creates new areas for aesthetics."
I guess that about sums it up,right?
If you are on Facebook you can look up Al Martinez and see some of his wonderful designs, they are wonderful to see, and you can meet a fascinating man as well.
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| Leaf a Day for a Year Project ---By Al Martinez |
By the way.... Did I mention that Al also makes tools?... yep... He repurposes tools like screwdrivers and wrenches to make chasing tools and hammers... wonderful stuff! |
| tools made for repousse and chasing by Al Martinez |
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