biography
A Colorado native, Doug Martin was born in Colorado Springs in 1952. He earned his photographic degree from Colorado Mountain College in Glenwood Springs in the early seventies and worked as a fine art and commercial photographer in Denver until the late nineties. He is now based south of Denver in Centennial, Colorado.
In 2003, at the age of fifty one, Doug Martin picked up a paintbrush for the first time. His initial attempt at painting took place during a visit with old friend and fellow artist Ralph Oberg. The opportunity that Oberg afforded Martin over that four day visit has changed his life. Since then Doug has studied with accomplished artists at the Art Students League of Denver and in numerous painting workshops across the country. His most valued artistic insight and genuine critique comes from frequent discussions with his friend and mentor Dan Beck. "I was lucky enough to meet Dan at The League in 2004. His input and interest in helping me develop my artistic vocabulary has facilitated advances in my art that reasonably could have taken much longer." Martin's other influences include Michael Lynch, Kathryn Stats, Nicolai Fechin and Andrew Wyeth.
As a representational painter Martin shares the viewpoints of mainstream traditional realism. Among these affinities are Martin's interest in painting from life, the creation of picturesque compositions, and his concern with bringing his own emotional responses as well as the "mood of the place" into his paintings.
When Doug isn't wandering around the country on painting trips in his "home away from home" he lives In Centennial with his wife and son.
on location
...at Sprague Lake for Estes Park Plein Air event
...with Susiehyer at Bear Lake
...overlooking Rabbit Island, HI
...Big Sur in the sunshine, woo hoo!!!
...in the fog below Carmel
..."home away from home" in Monument Valley
...at Makapu Point, Oahu
...at Julia Pfiefer Burns in CA