ARTISTS \ Edgar Martins
Martins is an established international photographic artist: Portuguese-born, raised in China and now based in the UK. He describes the sub-prime crisis as exposing “pervasive weaknesses as well as deep-rooted inequalities within financial industry regulation and the global financial system”, and in 2008 the New York Times invited him to create a photographic feature consisting of “a series of photographs that explored the collapse of the American housing market and exposed the full extent and impact of this crisis.” The project became better known for the communication failure between artist and commissioner than for the political commentary itself, as Martins was berated and condemned when it emerged that the photographs, described by the New York Times as utilising “long exposures, but no digital manipulation,” were in fact subjected to significant artistic intervention in post-production. It was found that Martins digitally reshaped some of the images in the feature to conform more closely to his pre-determined aesthetics of the piece, particularly creating architectural symmetries where they hadn’t actually existed.
For the artist's complete and available work list, to enquire.
Press
Selected articles available to download
Ground Control, FT Weekend, words by Alice Fishburn, 19 October 2013
This is not a House, Opening Shots, Blueprint Magazine, July 2012
This is not a House (review), Aesthetica Magazine, text by Ruby Beesley, June 2012
Edgar Martins Profile, F22, text by Georgina Goodman, June 2012
The British Journal of Photography, text by Geoff Dyer, October 2011
AG, Portfolio (This is Not a House), Spring 2011
HotShoe, text by Jorge Calado, October 2009
Selected bibliography
2011
Edgar Martins,”This is not a House” in AG, nº 63 (Spring/Ressort), Pg. 74-83, Londres / London
Cyrus Sharad, “Black Minutes of Memorial Snow” in QUART, Innsbruck (Austria)
“Mondo Vision” in Art Press, nº 379, 54th Venice Biennale Special Edition (Juin/June), Paris
2010
Aaron Schuman, “The in-between: When Light Casts no Shadow” in Hot Shoe, nº 164 (Feb- Mar), Londres / London
Tim Clark, “Dark vision” in British Journal of Photography, nº 157 (13-01), Londres / London
Pedro Faro, “When Light Casts no Shadow” in L+Arte, nº 68 (Février / February), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Herbert Wright, in Blueprint, nº 296 (Novembre/November) Londres / London
Alexandra Carita, “Matéria Teórica” in O Actual/O Expresso , pgs 10-13, nº 1985 (13/11), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Francisco Valente, “Não sabemos exactamente o que se está a passar aqui” in Ipsílon/O Público, pgs 36-37, nº (29-10), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Béatrice Andrieux, “Edgar Martins, Entre reel et fictionnnel”, in Le Mag : le meilleur de l’actualité de l’art contemporain (http://www.ouvretesyeux.fr/mag/photos.htm), (Novembre/November), Paris
Augustin Fontanier, “Le fracas du silence”, in L’interméde (http://www.lintermede.com/exposition-edgar-martins-centre-calouste-gulbenkianparis- parcours-biographie.php), 18/11/2010, Paris
Caroline Mallet, “Edgar Martins Paris”, in Réponses Photo, nº 49020, pgs 194-197, (Decembre, December), Paris
Laurence Cerret, “Edgar Martins: L’etat des lieux”, in Images Magazine (Novembre/November), Paris
Sixtine Dubly, “Le Monde Bouge”, in Ideat, nº 70294 (Novembre/November), Paris
G.M., “Edgar Martins, ultra moderne solitude”, Connaisance des Artes nº Special (Novembre- Fevrier / November-Febreuary), Paris .Edgar Martins bibliography. (last updated 17/09/2010)
Olivier Namias, “Edgar Martins, en quête d’ambiguités”, D’architectures, nº 196, pags 14-15 (December-Decembre), Paris
F.C., “Martins garde la pose”, Télérama Sortir, page 14 (01/07 December/Decembre), Paris
G.M. ” Edgar Martins, ulra moderne solitude”, Connaissance des Arts, Nº Special (November/Novembre), Paris
B.C., “Le Mois dr la photographie à Paris: La Ligne Volage d’ Edgar Martins”, ArtsThree blog (Novembre/November), France
2009
Sérgio B. Gomes, “Edgar Martins: convite para entrar na ambiguidade do tempo e do espaço”, in O Público, 29-03, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Jorge Calado, “Ubiquidade de um artista”, O Actual/O Expresso, 21-03, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Luís Rocha, “Artista Edgar Martins destaca-se no BES Photo”, in Diário de Notícias da Madeira, 24-03, Madeira
Claudia Almeida, “O topógrafo paciente” in Visão, nº838 (26-03 / 01-04), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Sérgio B. Gomes, “Fotografar no escuro exigie sorte, mas Edgar Martins prefere arriscar” in O Público, 10-04, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Celso Martins, “Caminhos Separados” in O Expresso, 10-04, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Sílvia Souto Cunha, “O tempo e o modo” in Visão, 16-04, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Elsa Garcia, ” Em foco: Edgar Martins”, in Time Out, 22-04, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Áureo Soares, “Entrevista com Edgar Martins”, in Must/Jornal de Negócios, 30-04, Lisbonne / Lisbon
David Santos, “Edgar Martins: O espaço e a luz” in Arq’a – Portuguese Contemporary Architecture and Art Magazine, nº 69 (Mai / May), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Patrícia Brito “O tempo que o tempo tem” in UP, TAP magasin en vol / in-flight magazine, Juin / June, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Rosário Mello e Castro, “Live-trânsito” in Vogue Portugal, nº 81 (Juillet / July), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Catarina Vilar, “Interview with Edgar Martins” in Direct Arts, nº 3 (Été / Summer), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Miguel Matos, “O dia em que a arte e o jornalismo colidiram” in Time Out, 22-28 Juin / July, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Jorge.Calado, “Pecado original” in O Actual/O Expresso, 25-07, Lisbonne /Lisbon
Jorge.Calado, “The original sin” in Hot Shoe, nº 162 (Oct-Nov), Londres / London
Rui Gonçalves Cepeda, “Edgar Martins: The Rate of Convergence of Two Opposing System Trajectories” in Lápiz: Revista Internacional de Arte, nº 258 (Décembre / December), p. 88, Madrid
Peter D. Osborne, “Isto não é uma casa” in Umbigo, nº 31 (Décembre / December), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Nuno Porto & Ana Rita Amaral, “The Diminishing Present” in Dardo, nº 10, Santiago de Compostela
2008
Diane Smith, “Edge of darkness” in British Journal of Photography, nº 155 (23-04), Londres / London
Richard Pinsent, “Simple in Europe, complex in the USA” in The Art Newspaper, Vol. XVII nº 192 (Juin / June), Londres / London
Pedro Faro, “Topologies” in L+Arte, nº 49 (June), Lisbonne / Lisbon
2007
RC, “Edgar Martins: Exhibition at BCA” in The Guide Exhibitions/The Guardian, Janvier / January Londres / London
Alexandre Pomar, “Linhas de Encontro” in O Actual/O Expresso, 09-02, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Susana Paiva, “Edgar Martins – Portugueses de Diáspora: uma certa quietude” in Magazine Artes, nº 49 (Mars / March), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Andrea Aversa, “Edgar Martins at Betty Cunigham Gallery” in Art in America, 05/01, New York .Edgar Martins bibliography. (last updated 17/09/2010)
Unknown author, “Edgar Martins: The Diminishing Present” in Antiqvaria, Août / August, Madrid
Jorge Margolles, “Edgar Martins: The Diminishing Present” in Art Notes, nº 11, Madrid
Susana Paiva, “Topologias de Edgar Martins: morfologias do real”, in Magazine Artes, nº 57 (Décembre / December), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Esther G. Ramirez, “Edgar Martins rinde su peculiar homenaje a los aeropuertos” in AENA Arte, nº 21 (Hiver / Winter), Madrid
Martha Langford, “Learning without pictures” in Source, nº 51, Belfast
2006
Deborah Garwood, “The Camera as Paintbrush”, The New York Sun, 04-01, p. 14, New York
“Edgar Martin: Exhibition at Betty Cuningham Gallery” in The New Yorker, 15-01, p. 12, New York
Robert Latona “Exhibition Focus – Edgar Martins: The Diminishing Present” in Focus, nº 11 (Février / February), Brooklyn
Ana Ruivo, “Encontros na paisagem: a estranheza de duas series de trabalho de um jovem fotógrafo” in O Expresso, 20-05, Lisbonne / Lisbon
Abel H. Pozuelo, “Edgar Martins” in El Cultural, nº 19 (25-10), Madrid
2005
João Magalhães, “Urbanismos” in L+Arte, nº 11 (Avril / April), Lisbonne / Lisbon
Charlie Gates, “The Spaces in Between” in Building Design, 27-05, Londres / London
Stephen Blower, “Edgar Martins: The Diminishing Present” in Hot Shoe, nº 136 (Jun-Jul), p.71-72, Londres / London
Terri WIthehead, “Edgar Martins: Photofusion, Londres” in Canadian Art, nº 22 (Automne / Autumn), Toronto
Eduardo Prado Coelho, “Lugares” in O Público, 28-11, Lisbonne / Lisbon
2003
Lucy Soutter, “Black Holes & Other Inconsistencies” in Source, nº 36 (Fall), Belfast
Biography
Born in 1977, Évora
Lives and works in United Kingdom
Education
2000-2002
MA Photography and Fine Arts, Royal College of Art, London
1997-2000
BA (Hons) Photography, University of the Arts, London
Solo Exhibitions
2014
The Poetic Impossibility to Manage the Infinite, The Wapping Project Bankside, London
2013
- This is not a House touring to Tullie House Art Gallery & Museum, Carlisle.
- The Time Machine, Ffotogallery, Wales
- The Time Machine, Photofusion, London
2012
- This is not a House touring to The Wapping Project, London and Gallery of Photography, Dublin
- A Metaphysical Survey of British Dwellings & Dwarf Exoplanets at Laura Marsiaj Arte Contemporânea, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- This is not a House at Zandari Gallery, Seoul, Korea
2011
- The Time Machine, Museu da Electricidade, Lisbon, Portugal
- The Time Machine, The Wapping Project Bankside
- The Time Machine, 54th Venice Biennale, Macau (China Pavilion)
- A Metaphysical Survey of British Dwellings, Galerie Melanie Rio, Nantes, France
- This is not a House touring to The New Art Gallery Walsall, Walsall and Camera16, Milan
- A Metaphysical Survey of British Dwellings, Yamamoto Gendai, Tokyo
2010
- This is not a House, The Photographers’ Gallery, London
- A Metaphysical Survey of British Dwellings, HS Gallery, London
- Reluctant Monoliths, The Photographer’s Gallery, London
- The Wayward Line, Centre Culturel Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Paris
2009
- Topologies, Orient Foundation Museum, Lisbon
- Reluctant Monoliths, Galerie Melanie Rio, Nantes, France
- When Light Casts no Shadow, Galeria Graça Brandão, Lisbon
- The Accidental Theorist, Paul Kopeikin Gallery, Los Angeles
- When Light Casts no Shadow, Porta 33, Madeira
- When Light Casts no Shadow, Galerie Caprice Horn, Berlin
2008
- When Light Casts no Shadow, Galerie Melanie Rio, Nantes, France Topologies, La Caja Negra, Madrid
- Topologies, Laura Marsiaj, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Topologies, Paul Kopeikin Gallery, Los Angeles
2007
- Aproximações, Galeria Graça Brandão, Lisbon
- The Diminishing Present, BCA Gallery, Bedford, England
- The Diminishing Present, Visual Arts Centre, Coimbra, Portugal
2006
- The Diminishing Present, Betty Cuningham Gallery, New York
- The Diminishing Present, La Caja Negra, Madrid
- The Rehearsal of Space, The Photographer’s Gallery, London
- The Accidental Theorist, Galeria Graça Brandão, Oporto, Portugal
2005
The Diminishing Present, Photofusion, London
2004
- The Rehearsal of Space, Macau Art Museum, Macau, China
- Black Holes and Other Inconsistencies, Cadeia da Relação (Portuguese Centre of Photography), Oporto, Portugal
Group Exhibitions
2013
Landmark: The Fields of Photography, Somerset House, London
2012
The Near and the Elsewhere – PM Gallery & House (London),
2011
- Something That I’ll Never Really See, Contemporary Photography From the V&A, Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad, India
- Da Cartografia do Poder aos Itinerários do Saber, Museu da Ciência da Universidade de Coimbra, Brazil
- Infinite Balance, Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA) San Diego
- Migration & Nomadic Living, Backlight Festival, Tampere Kunsthalle
- The Burrow, Siakos Hanappe, House of Art, Athens
- The 54th Venice Biennale International Art Exhibition, Memory & Mobility, Macau, China Pavilion
2010
- Détournement, Galerie Melanie Rio, Nantes, France
- Abrstraction, Château d’Eau, Toulouse, France
- Impresiones Y Comentários: Fotografia Contemporánea Portuguesa, Sala Parpaló, Valência, Spain and Fundació Foto Colectania, Barcelona, Spain
- Da Outra Margem do Atlântico: alguns exemplos de videoarte e fotografia portuguesa, Centro de arte Hélio Oiticica, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Something That I’ll Never Really See, Contemporary Photography. From the Victoria & Albert Museum, Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Mumbai, India
- A Culpa não é minha (obras da colecção António Cachola), Centro Cultural de Belém, Lisbon, Portugal
- 15 min exhibition, Paraty em Foco, Paraty, Brazil
- 15 min exhibition, Ateliê da Imagem Espaço Cultural, Rio de Janeiro
- Da Outra Margem do Atlântico –alguns exemplos de videoarte e fotografia portuguesa, Centro de Arte Hélio Oiticica, Rio de Janeiro
- Des lendemains qui chantent, Galerie Melanie Rio, Nantes
- What Lies Beneath, Swedish Embassy, Washington, Foto DC Week
- Prix Pictet Show, Thessaloniki Museum of Photography, Thessaloniki, Greece; The Empty Quarter, Dubai, UAE and Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, Germany.
- Jogo de Espelhos, Museu de Arte Comtemporânea de Elvas, Elvas
2009
- Lá Fora, Portuguese Artists, Museu da Electricidade, Lisbon
- BES Award Berardo Museum (Belém Cultural Centre), Lisbon
- Format Festival, Derby
- International Photography Festival, Lodz, Poland
- Opções e Futuros, PLMJ Collection, Museu da Cidade, Lisbon
- Estuaire, Nantes Art Biennial 2009
- NYPHA, Invitational Pavilion, Tobacco Warehouse, New York
- Scope Basel, The New Empire, Contemporary Chinese Photography, Miami
- Paisagem, Centro de Artes Visuais, Coimbra
- Entre o Céu e o Mar, organized by Centro de Artes Visuais for Centro Cultural de Lagos in the context of “Art Algarve 2009”
- Prix Pictet Award, Passage de Retz, Paris
2008
- Lianzhou International Photo Festival, Lianzhou, China
- Terry O’Neil Award, Fulham Palace, London
- ING Real Photography Award, Las Palmas Museum, Rotterdam
- Opções e Futuros, PLMJ Foundation, Lisbon
- Linha do Horizonte, Centro Cultural da Caixa Económica Federal, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Contemporary Portuguese Photography, Museu da Presidência da República, Viana do Castelo, Portugal
- That Was Then… This is Now, P.S. 1, MoMA, New York
- Immoral Facts & Fables, Galerie Caprice Horn, Berlin
2007
On the Wall: Aperture Magazine ’05-’06, Aperture Gallery, New York
2006
- Alentejo Elementar, Galeria Municipal de São Sebastião, Portalegre;
- Constelações Afectivas, Galeria Graça Brandão, Lisbon, Portugal
- Selections from the Permanent Photography Collection, Victoria and Albert Museum, London
2005
- Newly Commissioned Work Coimbra Visual Arts Centre, Portugal
- Extensão do Ohar, Coimbra Visual Arts Centre, Portugal
2004
The Jerwood Photography Awards Winners Exhibition 2003, Jerwood Space London
Awards
2011
- Finalist, AI-AP
- Finalist, Voies Off, Arles 2011
- Winner, Pro Photographer Awards
- Finalist, Photography Contest, Forward Thinking Museum
2010
- Winner, International photography Awards, Fine Art Abstract Category
- Finalist London International Creative Competition
2009
- Finalist, SONY World Photography Awards
- Winner, Banco Espirito Santo Photo Award
- Finalist, Prix Pictet
2008
- Selected for ING Real Photography Award
- Winner, Association of Photographers Award (Contemporary Landscape & Cityscape)
- Finalist, Hasselblad Photography Masters
- Winner, New York Photography Awards (Fine Art Category)
- Finalist, Arles and Photo Espanã Book Awards
- Finalist, Terry O Neil Award
2007
Magenta Foundation Emerging Photographers Competition, Winner, UK Category, Toronto, Canada
2004
Finalist, Infinity Awards, Young Photographers Category
2003
- RCA Society and Thames & Hudson Art Book Prize for ‘Black Holes & Other Inconsistencies’
- Winner, The Jerwood Photography Awards
Collections
- Victoria and Albert Museum, London
- National Media Museum, Bradford
- Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Portugal
- PLMJ Foundation, Lisbon, Portugal
- Macau Museum of Art, Macau, China
- BES, Portugal
- Royal Institute of British Architects, London
- Orient Foundation, Macau, China
- MACE (Contemporary Art Museum), Elvas, Portugal
- Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, USA
- Fundação EDP, Portugal
- Fondation Carmignac, France
Monographs and catalogues
2012
The Time Machine, the Moth House
2011
- Two Degrees of Separation, EDP Portugal
- This is not a House, Dewi Lewis
2010
The Wayward Line, Centre Culturel Calouste Gulbenkian
2009
- When Light Casts no Shadow, Dewi Lewis
- BES Photo Award, Berardo Museum
- Future Images, guide to top 100 contemporary artists –
- published by 24ore Motta Cultura and curated by Raul Cresci & Radu Stern
- Sotheby’s Guide to Collecting Photography published by Thames & Hudson and written by Jocelyn Phillips
- The Unreachable Landscape: Some Themes in Photography in England from 1990 to 2007 by Peter D. Osbourne in Cahier Fotografie nr. 2, 09, Belgium
2008
- Edgar Martins: Topologies, Aperture
- Topologies, Centro de Artes Visuais
2006
- The Diminishing Present, The Moth House
- Approaches, ANA
2003
Black Holes & Other Inconsistencies, The Moth House
2001
Of Shadow and No-places, Fundação Oriente, Macao
1999
Reflexos, Desequilíbrios e Espaços de Intersecção, Leal Senado de Macau, Macao