'The ebb and flow of the journey'...An interview with: Marybel Martin
3 days ago
5 min read
Astral speak with Oregon based magical artist @marybelmartin
"Growing up in the shadow of Disneyland in a Southern California suburb and later in the bustling city of Buenos Aires, Marybel has a unique way of looking at life. She has been drawing, painting and creating characters ever since she was a child. She has said that she could always escape to other worlds with the stroke of her pencil. Her childhood home was filled with magic and excitement. At times, there were mysterious séances held in the family living room while actors, politicians and artists frequented the house. The supernatural and fantastical have always influenced her work. In her 40’s Marybel was living in regret of not becoming a professional artist. She wanted to model for her kids that it’s never to late to follow your dreams. She signed up for art school and graduated from Pacific Northwest College of Art with a Bachelor Degree in Fine Arts. She is passionate about creating and sharing the magical characters and worlds that live in her imagination. She also merged wellness and art by specializing in the mind/body/spirit connection." - www.marybelmartin.com
Read on below for the full interview...
Firstly how are you and how is life?
Life is a rollercoaster. One day you see sunshine and rainbows and the next day it can be darkness and cold. I try to stay present and really feel all aspects fully, it can be all gone in an instant and I don’t take that for granted. I am very aware of my own mortality as I age. The sense of being immortal that I had as a teen and young adult, has disappeared. I’ve experienced deep tragedy in my life the past few years, and that has made me more aware in general of the ebb and flow of the journey on this earth. I think about the mark I will leave. Raising two kids, making art, being a loyal friend and partner. Making mistakes, being human.
What was it like moving from California to Buenos Aires as a child?
Moving to Argentina on the verge of becoming a teenager was a culture shock. Argentina had been under a Military Coup government for years and the borders had been closed for anything imported. All the comforts of home in the US were gone. TV was still in black and white! And Buenos Aires looked like I had travelled back in time. I spoke a bit of Spanish, but not enough to be plunged into school, so I was held back a year. Drawing helped me feel less alone, until I made friends. Kids at school called me “yankee” and asked if I knew Wonder Woman personally. My first friend, Florencia, was a lifeline, we are still friends to this day. I eventually loved living there and I was embraced by everyone.
Where are you currently based and what do you love outside of art?
I currently live in Portland, Oregon in a haunted pink Victorian house. I am close to forests and rivers. Some people say Big Foot lives around here! The things I love most are visiting places I’ve never been to, laughing with my bestie, hanging with my family, museums, ghost stories (even if I can’t sleep after).
What are some of the occurring ideas that inspire your work and why?
I really love to draw magical creatures like mermaids, monsters and fairies. I love to draw anthropomorphic animals, I love to paint dreams and memories. I especially like to draw about feelings. I think that when I create this subject matter, it makes me feel childlike. I feel safe and happy. It takes me back to a time when I was little and I hadn’t gone though the hard parts yet. It makes me feel awe and giddiness. Like I’m creating my own worlds with my own characters and realities.
Please could you tell us about what your piece 'Freed Herself' represents?
Freed herself is an image of a fairy-like woman running with all her might. If you look closely, there are butterfly wings growing from her head, she is covered in ladybugs, spiders, an octopus and a snake. She runs free, alone, strong, and at peace. This came about during a moment of self realization in which I understood how one can limit oneself. And just like that, one can free oneself as well. I had been living as a housewife for many years, never doing art and supporting the dreams of my husband. I lived in regret, looking at others live their dream careers. One day, I suddenly couldn’t breathe. I thought I was going to die. I was having an anxiety attack. After that day, I was like Ebeneezer Scrooge, thanking my stars for another chance. I enrolled in art school, ran a marathon and got a divorce.
What was it like having séances held in your house when you were young?
Ever since I could remember, my parents held “sessions”. We would have all kinds of people over who wanted to connect to the other side. Sometimes even actors and politicians. My dad would hypnotize them and he would voice record the experience. They’d make a whole evening out of it, with dinner and conversation first. My sisters and I were NOT allowed to be present, until we were older teens, BUT, we found a way to listen in. We would lay on the ground with our ears glued to the heater vent, and we could clearly hear everything! Later on, when I was older, I was hypnotized a few times and to this day, I remember how crisp the images I saw were. I heard music and I saw people from another place and time. Having this experience didn’t really clarify anything about the afterlife, timelines or other dimensions. It just created more questions for me. What I do know, is that nobody truly knows what happens when we die. It also made me hope for some continuation after we are done here. Not that I would want to haunt anyone, (that sounds exhausting) but if there was a something after, that was more peaceful, that would be nice.
Could you please tell us about the process of creating a new work of art and the emotions that arise?
I generally brainstorm until I feel a “spark”. It’s a super exciting feeling of wanting to drop everything in my life to make the piece. I always start with the background and then blocking in color. At this point I hate the painting and want to throw it away in the trash, so I leave it for a while. I wait until the spark comes back. If I have a face in the piece, the moment I make the eyes, is the moment everything clicks and falls into place. I feel like a won the lottery. I feel like I am sliding down a Candyland slide all the way to the end. Of course, there are times when it doesn’t click and it doesn’t feel like that and I just want to burn it.
What does spirituality mean to you?
Spirituality is a trust, a safe place, an “other” that I can access. I don’t have the right words to explain because it’s not a religion, it’s a bigger “sense” than anything physical, or mental. I feel it especially when I’m making art. Something opens up, it dictates what is being made. I lose track of time, I don’t feel my body, it’s something majestic. It also means talking to those who have left us, not in a seance, crystal ball way, but feeling like they’re still here somehow, in a way we don’t quite understand.
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Discover more of Marybel Martin via:
- Astral Magazine
