Claudia Martin
she/they
Somerville, MA, USA
Claudia Martin is an illustrator and metalsmith based in New England. A lifelong artist of many mediums, their body of work is a result of a long love affair with stories, strangeness and swords.
“The Naked Flame is an adapted reproduction of an early-American candle sconce in miniature. It is a subversion of a traditionally utilitarian object, made anew as an object of pure decoration and personal adornment, that borders the line of impracticality. A flame as an accessory, uniquely wearable, until it is not.”
What does being queer mean to you in relation to your material choices? Is it something you consider?
“The first time I picked up a hammer to forge a bar of steel, I was not thinking about queerness or gender, or anything profound for that matter. I wanted to hit hot metal and I wanted to make art. I wanted to make something I had drawn and hold it in my hands.
Suffice to say it became a habit, and eventually I did start to think about what blacksmithing, and now metalsmithing, means to me as a queer person. It gave me a deep sense of personal power to learn to shape steel with my hands, and in thinking through why I felt so empowered by such a traditionally hypermasculine craft, I found a lot of clarity and understanding of myself and my gender identity.
I don't consider my queerness a driving force in the media I choose to work in, nor do I always choose to make work that explicitly expresses commentary about queerness, but I believe that all artists imbue their work with the context of their lives, sometimes beyond the strict intention or purpose of the work."
"Naked Flame", Sterling silver, 2.5" x .75", 2023
Is the work queer because the maker is queer, or is it queer because the subject matter is queer?
“I'm not a big proponent of separating the art from the artist - I am queer, and therefore my work is queer. The subject matter is queer because it means something to me, it means enough for me to make art about it, and I see the world in context with my queerness, not in addition to, or despite it. The whole picture is that I am a driven and inspired individual who makes a lot of art and spends exactly 100% of their moments on Earth being queer. One does not exist before nor without the other."