Edgar Martins
Encyclopedia
Edgar Martins is a Portuguese
photographer and author who lives and works in the United Kingdom
.
.
The Diminishing Present and Approaches, Martins’ following books were launched in 2006. An exhibition of this work has toured 15 different countries.
In Spring 2008 Aperture Books, New York
, launched Edgar Martins’ next monograph, entitled Topologies. This work has been exhibited internationally, in Portugal, the UK, the US, Germany
, Brazil
, Spain and France.
The launch of his new book, When Light Casts no Shadow is scheduled for Autumn 2009, and will be published by Dewi Lewis http://www.dewilewispublishing.com.
Martins has exhibited extensively throughout Asia
, America
and Europe
. His work is collected in museums, public, corporate and private collections, throughout the world, such as BES
(Portugal), the Fundação Ilídio Pinho (Portugal), MACE (Portugal), The Victoria and Albert Museum (UK), The National Media Museum (UK), The Dallas Museum of Art
(US,) The National Media Museum (UK), The Caloust Gulbenkian Foundation (Paris), The EDP Foundation (Portugal), amongst many others.
Edgar Martins was the recipient of the inaugural and much sought after New York Photography Award (Fine Art Category) in May 2008 . He was also selected for the Terry O’Neil Award (UK), and awarded a National Media Museum Bursary Fund (UK).
More recently he was awarded the prestigious BES Photo Prize and a Sony World Photography Award.
Edgar Martins was also a finalist in the Prix Pictet 2009.
Martins was considered by US and UK art critics as one of the most influential artist of his generation, working with the medium of Photography. The Art Newspaper, in an article published in June 2006 compared the work of Gregory Crewdson and Edgar Martins, stating that Martins "seeks fresh horizons to develop a philosophical, quasi-scientific investigation, carried forward on several different fronts" and that "whereas Crewdson's books puts enormous effort into disguising the artificiality of what are in essence almost operatic productions, Martins' sensibility just keeps it simple: the overall concept being photography for photography's sake."
MetaFilter
pointed out that at least some of the images were digitally altered, which was not consistent with the text accompanying the photo essay which claimed that the photos were obtained with 'long exposures but without digital manipulation'. The essay has since been removed from the website, replaced with a statement that "[e]ditors later confronted the photographer and determined that most of the images did not wholly reflect the reality they purported to show".
The analysis further went on to show that images purportedly showing symmetry in Mr. Martin's other exhibits were created by mirroring half of a photograph and adding small, asymmetrical details to the mirrored half. Examples can be seen in several images from Martin's work "The Diminishing Present".
Martins later said in an essay on the controversy that
Martins has also claimed that he did not, in fact, represent to the New York Times that his photo essay would be produced without any manipulation, making statements that "on the 24th June 2009, two days prior to the project being published, I emailed The New York Times a synopsis of the work describing it as 'a study that goes beyond pure formal investigation and documentation' and that there was “a clear misunderstanding concerning the values and rights associated to the creative process which made a renown publication like The New York Times Magazine, commission a fine-artist, such as myself, to depict a very specific view of reality without taking all the necessary measures to ensure that I was aware of its journalistic parameters and limits.”
Between August and November 2009 several philosophers, writers and curators spoke out on the matter, publicly supporting the artist, his work and the discussion which it ignited.
Portuguese curator Jorge Calado remarked that "Photography begins with an “f” sound that stands for fiction, fake or forgery. And that is the original sin of photography. Only the most untainted purists (and the pedantic New York Times) seem to be unaware of this."
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
photographer and author who lives and works in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
Early life and education
Despite his Portuguese birth, Martins grew up in Macau, China. In 1996, at the age of 18, he published his first book - a philosophical novel entitled Mãe, deixa-me fazer o pino ('Mother, let me do the hand stand'). In 1997 he moved to the UK, where he later completed a BA in Photography and Social Sciences at the London Institute, followed by an MA in Photography and Fine Art at the Royal College of ArtRoyal College of Art
The Royal College of Art is an art school located in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s only wholly postgraduate university of art and design, offering the degrees of Master of Arts , Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy...
.
Work and honors
Martins's first monograph, Black Holes & Other Inconsistencies was awarded the RCA Society and Thames & Hudson Art Book Prize. A selection of images from this book were also awarded the inaugural Jerwood Photography Award in 2003.The Diminishing Present and Approaches, Martins’ following books were launched in 2006. An exhibition of this work has toured 15 different countries.
In Spring 2008 Aperture Books, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, launched Edgar Martins’ next monograph, entitled Topologies. This work has been exhibited internationally, in Portugal, the UK, the US, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Spain and France.
The launch of his new book, When Light Casts no Shadow is scheduled for Autumn 2009, and will be published by Dewi Lewis http://www.dewilewispublishing.com.
Martins has exhibited extensively throughout Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, America
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. His work is collected in museums, public, corporate and private collections, throughout the world, such as BES
Banco Espírito Santo
Banco Espírito Santo is a private Portuguese bank, based in Lisbon.The Banco Espírito Santo’s origins began with the lottery, currency exchange and securities business carried out by José Maria do Espírito Santo e Silva between 1869 and 1884...
(Portugal), the Fundação Ilídio Pinho (Portugal), MACE (Portugal), The Victoria and Albert Museum (UK), The National Media Museum (UK), The Dallas Museum of Art
Dallas Museum of Art
The Dallas Museum of Art is a major art museum located in the Arts District of downtown Dallas, Texas, USA, along Woodall Rodgers Freeway between St. Paul and Harwood. In 1984, the museum moved from its previous location in Fair Park to the Arts District, Dallas, Texas...
(US,) The National Media Museum (UK), The Caloust Gulbenkian Foundation (Paris), The EDP Foundation (Portugal), amongst many others.
Edgar Martins was the recipient of the inaugural and much sought after New York Photography Award (Fine Art Category) in May 2008 . He was also selected for the Terry O’Neil Award (UK), and awarded a National Media Museum Bursary Fund (UK).
More recently he was awarded the prestigious BES Photo Prize and a Sony World Photography Award.
Edgar Martins was also a finalist in the Prix Pictet 2009.
Martins was considered by US and UK art critics as one of the most influential artist of his generation, working with the medium of Photography. The Art Newspaper, in an article published in June 2006 compared the work of Gregory Crewdson and Edgar Martins, stating that Martins "seeks fresh horizons to develop a philosophical, quasi-scientific investigation, carried forward on several different fronts" and that "whereas Crewdson's books puts enormous effort into disguising the artificiality of what are in essence almost operatic productions, Martins' sensibility just keeps it simple: the overall concept being photography for photography's sake."
Digital Alteration Controversy
In the Sunday July 6, 2009, edition of the New York Times Magazine, Edgar Martins published an expanded photo essay entitled "Ruins of the Second Gilded Age". On July 7, commentors on community weblogBlog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
MetaFilter
MetaFilter
MetaFilter, known as MeFi to its members, is a community weblog whose purpose is to share links and discuss content that users have discovered on the web.-Community:MetaFilter was founded by Matthew Haughey in 1999...
pointed out that at least some of the images were digitally altered, which was not consistent with the text accompanying the photo essay which claimed that the photos were obtained with 'long exposures but without digital manipulation'. The essay has since been removed from the website, replaced with a statement that "[e]ditors later confronted the photographer and determined that most of the images did not wholly reflect the reality they purported to show".
The analysis further went on to show that images purportedly showing symmetry in Mr. Martin's other exhibits were created by mirroring half of a photograph and adding small, asymmetrical details to the mirrored half. Examples can be seen in several images from Martin's work "The Diminishing Present".
Martins later said in an essay on the controversy that
[...] my intentions with this work were not to deliberate on the condition of Photojournalism nor on the need to claim artistic authorship over pictures.[...] Whilst I welcome some of the debate that is taking place, I did not envisage that it would be mostly centered on polarities such as ethical/unethical, right/wrong, real/unreal.”
Martins has also claimed that he did not, in fact, represent to the New York Times that his photo essay would be produced without any manipulation, making statements that "on the 24th June 2009, two days prior to the project being published, I emailed The New York Times a synopsis of the work describing it as 'a study that goes beyond pure formal investigation and documentation' and that there was “a clear misunderstanding concerning the values and rights associated to the creative process which made a renown publication like The New York Times Magazine, commission a fine-artist, such as myself, to depict a very specific view of reality without taking all the necessary measures to ensure that I was aware of its journalistic parameters and limits.”
Between August and November 2009 several philosophers, writers and curators spoke out on the matter, publicly supporting the artist, his work and the discussion which it ignited.
Portuguese curator Jorge Calado remarked that "Photography begins with an “f” sound that stands for fiction, fake or forgery. And that is the original sin of photography. Only the most untainted purists (and the pedantic New York Times) seem to be unaware of this."