Untitled

Date2001

Maker Cameron Martin American, born 1970

Label TextHaving grown up in Seattle, Cameron Martin’s work is deeply influenced by the Northwest landscape, and he has often looked to the photographs of 19th-century photographer Carleton Watkins for source imagery. More recently, the artist has begun to take his own photographs of various landscapes he seeks out. In this painting, however, Martin uses an image of a tree to explore the language of abstraction. In his highly-detailed representation of a London Plane tree, Martin’s image signals his exploration of the medium of painting rather than a desire to create a naturalistic portrait of an identifiable tree.

Object number2002.29

ProvenanceThe artist; [Artemis Greenberg Van Doren, New York]; ContemporaryArtProject, Seattle, Washington; to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 2002

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, SAM Collects: ContemporaryArtProject, Dec. 21, 2002 - Apr. 6, 2003. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Reclaimed: Nature and Place Through Contemporary Eyes, June 30 - Sept. 11, 2011. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Reverberations: Contemporary Art and Modern Classics, Dec. 22, 2022 - ongoing. Published ReferencesYoung, Tara, "SAM Collects: ContemporaryArtProject" 2002, Seattle Art Museum, 2002, pg. 50

Credit LineGift of the ContemporaryArtProject, Seattle

Dimensions72 x 60 in. (182.9 x 152.4cm)

MediumOil on canvas