When talking to a painter about a series of historical paintings, you may expect to be discussing ancient history. However, a conversation with local artist Adrian Martinez winds through unexpected perspectives.
For the past two decades, Martinez has been working on a series of paintings depicting historic events that occurred in the Brandywine Valley. It started with scenes from the 1700s, when the first Quakers to inhabit the region lived peacefully with Indigenous people for a short period, then jumped ahead in history in decade-or-so spans. Now he has arrived at the Battle of the Brandywine and is working on a series that represents not only the battle itself but its consequences on local people and the future.
Martinez has thought quite a lot about this series and how it represents history.
“Faulkner once said something like, ‘History is never finished. It's never even past,’” said Martinez.
He takes it in stride that as time goes along, new perspectives give fresh insight into events, causes, and effects.
“The history I grew up with is no longer relevant,” he added. “It's not even true.”
Historical painting was not always Martinez’s style. He started his painting career in abstract expressionism, then worked in conceptual art and other styles. During his time at Saint Martin’s School of Art, a prestigious art college in London, England which is now part of the Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, he was drawn to other styles, including oil realistic paintings of the Western European tradition. It wasn't embraced by his department, and he noted that then-Head of Painting Sir Frederick Gore, told him specifically, “One must be of one’s place and one’s time.”
Nevertheless, Martinez continued to study and work in the style, while embracing others as well.
“Why give up anything,” he said, talking of the various art techniques, mediums, and styles he has utilized over the decades, “I want it all.”
As he shows pieces from his historical series as well as still lifes, portraits, sculptures, and other artworks, Martinez notes that really, all styles are represented. A teapot in a saturated still life overseen by a stoic marble bust is really its own abstract piece, the flames in a grove of trees on the edge of a battlefield bring a burst of contemporary artistic vision. Plates reminiscent of ancient pottery portray silhouettes as they would have been shown in various centuries, from realistic outlines to aristocratic standards of beauty.
To remind those who may have dozed off during some history lessons, the Battle of the Brandywine took place on September 11, 1777, during the War of Independence. Led by Gen. George Washington, forces met the British Army of General Sir William Howe near Chadds Ford and fought for twelve hours. The defeat of Washington’s forces was a heavy blow, allowing the British to capture Philadelphia as the Continental Congress fled the city.
Martinez is currently working on the third painting in his series, which is planned to span 12 artworks. Only two are intended to cover the battle itself. The rest will show the consequences of battle, for both historical figures and the people left behind. The Battle of the Brandywine devastated the battlefield and beyond, burning woods and buildings, and leaving locals to handle the wreckage, vestiges of which can be seen even today. He noted that for some, the images may stir feelings about current world events. “It is tragic to have that inescapable reference,” he said.
Perspective is a key reference in all of Martinez’s art, and also in his outlook.
“I've lived through the world for 74 years and I've seen and done some amazing things,” he said. “Paradoxically my age makes me particularly qualified to examine and even create some new stories out of our old grey-haired, dusty, and arthritic facts.” He doesn’t shy away from self-reflection, musing on his own recent neurodivergent diagnoses and how individuality is at the heart of creation.
“The more deeply I've looked into and lived the past (of art, history, culture, gender, religion, politics, human sexuality, philosophy, and atypical neuropsychology), the more I see and am truly amazed by the future,” said Martinez.
He muses that the near future may be difficult, but ahead of that, he sees the arrival of a world Renaissance. In the past, by siloing styles or artistic movements, he observed that artists “put themselves in aesthetic starvation.”
“The story we had to tell ourselves in the 1950s is not the story we need to hear today,” Martinez added. The historical perspective shown in this series, and the reflections on art through the millennia told throughout his body of work, are just one voice that can create understanding through imagery. There is beauty, knowledge, and much more than what lies on the surface of the paintings. As Martinez said, “It is art, after all.”
More is to come on Martinez’s historical series of artworks, but there are many ways to see his work and hear his perspective. He will be on the Chester County Studio Tour on May 18 and 19 at Studio #26, 363 Washington Avenue, Downingtown. He said to expect “a flamboyant old Victorian pile filled with oil paintings large and small, sculpture, etchings, engravings, elaborate furniture, and murals that I have created while looking back over a lifelong journey to see the future.” He will also be holding lectures on the events covered in his paintings locally ahead of the 250th Anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 2026. Find more information at AdrianMartinez.com.
About Victoria Rose
Victoria Rose (she/her) is an editor, writer, avid reader, self-described geek, and fan of all things creative. Her passion for words has led to her current career as a freelance editor, and she is the owner of Flickering Words, an editing service. When not wielding a red pen (or cursor), she loves reading books of all genres, playing video, board, and word games, baking ridiculous creations to show off on the internet, or enjoying the gorgeous outdoors. She is a board member of the West Chester Film Festival and part of the Thirsty Monsters, a team of streamers from around the world who fundraise for various charities supporting LGBTQIA+ and accessibility rights. She can be found online @WordsFlickering or the Brandywine Art Guide @BrandywineArtGuide.
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