Martin Blanco

This past week I attended the Downtown Los Angeles artwalk. In the Los Angeles Center for Digital Art a photo of mine hung on a wall next to the person I would like to introduce you to this week. This artist's name is Martin Blanco. I immediately jotted down his name so I could look up his other work once I got home. What I've

found online were several photo/mixed media art that I knew I had to post (if not for your viewing pleasure, so that I won't forget his name).

Martin has established himself as a master of mixed media art by combining illustrations with photos and a vision of darkness. When I look at these images, I am reminded of pictures I used to draw when I was younger. It almost feels like Martin has captured my imagination & thoughts on paper.

"Since 1998, I have been involved in the creation of dark art, developing themes like the pass of time and the unavoidable arrival of old age and death. I have always tried to focus my attention in expressing the desperation, anxiety and oppression that people feel when this time comes by creating dense atmospheres where characters are immersed. I have always liked mixing different media in my drawings and I have been finally able to explore all those possibilities when I started making digital art. Digital has opened Pandora’s box to me, giving me the freedom of combining my photographs with digital painting every time I need it and it has also increased the speed of my production. To create the atmospheres mentioned above, I use light and color contrasts, with highlights and dark shadows, since I am influenced by the work of the ancient masters like Caravaggio and Michelangelo. I also add textures and some visual noise to the backgrounds". -Martin Blanco