Curatorial Statement

It is said that an artist notices moments, objects and small details in the world that others do not see. Marta draws on her interdisciplinary background in architecture, furniture design and her personal story to create sculptures and paintings that reveal worlds where the “ordinary is extraordinary”.

She reminds us to look to the world outside of our window and engage nature and the creatures living there – “to see and experience delight in the everyday”.

In her VOLAR collection of mixed media sculptures, Marta has created birds of different species that express unique personalities and emotions ranging from confident to shy; happy to nervous, curious to reserved. All are formed through her unique vision and creative skill.

In her biography, Marta describes the experience of growing up in an “inspiring old house in a forest surrounded by friends, family and animals.”

When I first read her biography, I pictured an early Miro painting that I saw as a young person in the permanent collection of the National Gallery in Washington DC. It is called “The Farm” and dates 1921-1922.  It shows a magical place populated by array of animals. The lone humans are a woman hard at work and a child sitting on the ground.  There is a even slight hint of a forest in the background. I was drawn to this painting – almost pulled into its world. Today, Marta’s art creates a similar feeling of being pulled into the world of her sculptures.

-Mary Welch Higgins

Artist Biography

Marta Gutierrez was born in Medellin, Colombia. She was raised surrounded by her siblings and in the company of the endless stream of friends and family who came to an inspiring old house in the middle of a forest crawling with animals – too many cats and dogs and parrots to be counted, and one single monkey.

An architect by training, Marta arrived in Boston in 1985 where she enrolled at The School of the Museum of Fine Arts to follow her dream of becoming an artist. Two years later, she transferred to The Corcoran School of Art in Washington D.C. where she completed her BFA degree.

Marta has exhibited in galleries and museums in the United States, Spain and Colombia. Marta has her studio in Kensington, MD.