Donna L. Martin Fine Art

  Daphne 12”x12” Original Art Watercolor Batik and Acrylic Ink collaged on to a gallery depth canvas.  Daphne realized she wasn’t like the others.   She tried to fit in, but she was quieter than the others and her colors were just a little “off”.    She never quite felt accepted, even though she had big dreams and she was smart.   Then Daphne met Theo.   Theo was an elephant whose colors were also a little “off”.   The other elephants teased Theo and nicknamed him “Psychadelepant”, which hurt Theo terribly.   Daphne and Theo became lifelong friends and the best part, is that they accepted each other unconditionally.   Through each other’s eyes, they also learned to accept themselves, just as they were.   Perfectly imperfect. Daphne now lives in Canada with her new owner, but commissions are welcome.  Feel free to contact me and I would love to hear from you! https://dmartinfineart.com/ https://saltlightwatercolors@yahoo.c...

Bluebird 12” X 12” X 1.5” Original art Mixed Media on thick, Gallery Wrapped Canvas This painting was inspired by song lyrics from Miranda Lambert. Part of the chorus says, “And if the whole wide world stops singing and all the stars go dark I'll keep a light on in my soul, keep a bluebird in my heart.”   This painting is available!  Feel free to contact me.  Follow me on my website, Facebook, or Instagram. https://dmartinfineart.com/ https://www.instagram.com/donnamartinfineart/ https://www.facebook.com/donnamartinfineart

  Dream On 8” X 8” Original art Mixed Media on Cradle Board “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” ~ H. Jackson Brown Jr., P.S. I Love You This piece has many layers of papers, inks, and paint.  It has multiple layers of texture, giving it depth and interest.  There are subtle hints of gold iridescent paint in the painting that “glow” when the light hits it.  This piece is sold, but commissions are welcome.  Feel free to contact me...I'd love to hear from you! https://dmartinfineart.com/ https://saltlightwatercolors@yahoo.com https://www.instagram.com/donnamartinfineart https://www.facebook.com/donnamartinfineart          

Once Upon A Time Once upon a time, on a cold, winter’s night, the trees stood humble and still. All was calm and bright. There was hope. And the stars exhaled in gratitude. This is an original Mixed Media piece created with many layers of papers, paints and inks.  The original is sold, but commissions are welcome. https://dmartinfineart.com/  https://saltlightwatercolors@yahoo.com https://www.facebook.com/donnamartinfineart https://www.instagram.com/donnamartinfineart      

"Surrender" This is an original mixed media painting, just completed.  I had started with the background and had no idea what to do for the focal point.  I sat with this piece for a few days before I added the hummingbird.  At the time, it was just a few days before the hummingbirds in our yard were gone for the season and I wanted to remember them this year.  I was also contemplating how so many of my family and friends are in the midst of quite a few challenges this year.  I wanted this painting to symbolize love, joy, truth, and resilience.  A spirit of surrendering to the moment, not giving up, but accepting the challenges and facing them with grace and fortitude.  This painting will be available in an upcoming Facebook auction I am participating in.  Each month, our group donates 20% of our sales to a worthwhile charity or cause.  I would love it if you would check it out!  It's a great way to own a piece of...

Winter Day This little painting is fresh off the easel.  It was created with hand-painted papers, inks, and acrylic paints.  It has a dreamy, luminescent quality because of all the layers and glazing of paint. This one measures 8 X 8 and is finished with a simple, black floater frame.  It is available.  Feel free to send me an email for questions, comments, or if you are interested in purchasing. Be sure to follow me on Facebook , Instagram , or check out my website .

Singing a New Song One day it happened.  The seemingly never-ending fog began to clear.  The tiniest rays of crystal clear sunlight began to peak through the clouds.  Slow and uncertain, she decided to be brave and she began to allow the cracks in her heart to allow the light in, a little at a time.  It had been a long, cold season.  As she closed her eyes and breathed it in, she could feel her heart beginning to sing a new song. This piece has a vintage hankie as the background.  Vintage French ledger paper was added, as well as a photo transfer that I embellished with paint and inks.  I added leaves to the branches and finished it with a layer of encaustic wax, which gives the entire piece a “vintage” feel. This piece is sold, but commissions are welcome.  I would love to hear from you!  Feel free to email me. Follow me on Facebook and Instagram ! www.donnamartinfineart.com

"The Road Less Traveled" The finished piece! I've been wanting to create an elephant in mixed media for quite a while so,  this is how it started.  I gessoed a piece of 20 X 20 cradle board.  Then I added texture with molding paste and stencils.  I also added some molding paste to the elephant's trunk and head.  I had some textured paper that I love and decided to add some of that to her ears.  I then gessoed over the molding paste and the paper on her ears. Here you can see I started adding some paint.  I used Golden's  Quinacridone Nickel Azo Gold and Burnt Orange.  I'm all about the Turquoise lately, so I threw that in too. Now for the scary part...starting on the elephant.  I had her sketched out and I started adding some paint.  I mixed Paynes Gray, White, and  Anthraquinone Blue, and a little of the Turquoise to get a blue-gray color.  I wanted her to tie in with my background. ...

"Poppy Love Letters" This painting sure didn't end up like it started out!  In the beginning, it had bright pink flowers at the top and bright green grass at the bottom.  I toned down the flowers and the grass and decided I wanted poppies as the focal point. I added some painted, torn paper and some twine.  This one sat on the easel for months before I decided what to do with it.  Sometimes you just have to sit with something until you figure out where it wants to go! This piece measures 12 X 12 and was done on a 1.5" cradle board.  It found a home in Chicago.   Please feel free to send me an email with questions, comments...I would love to hear from you! saltlightwatercolors@yahoo.com You can follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/donnamartinfineart/ donnamartinfineart.com Follow me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/donnamartinfineart

Infinity In the midst of winter, I start dreaming about spring.  It's the time for renewal, new starts, new colors, new choices.  I always look forward to the flowers blooming and the warm sunshine blowing around in the spring winds.   Another thing I look forward to is the return of the hummingbirds.  My Grandma, from the time I can remember, always had a hummingbird feeder up at her place in the mountains.  I remember as a child being mesmerized by them and by my Grandmother's care for them.  They were like little tiny dancers. My Grandma is gone now and I miss her so much.  We had a special bond and she was the one I could turn to with any of my secrets without fear of judgement or rejection.  She worried about me, cried with me, celebrated with me, and loved me unconditionally.  I wish we would have had more time together. Whenever the hummingbirds come back around, I think of her.  These teeny, little birds have so muc...

"You Are Not Alone" This is my latest mixed media/assemblage.  The story unfolded as I was painting and constructing it.  I was thinking about how we are all faced with challenges in our lives, sometimes they seem insurmountable.  If I'm being real, authentic, and honest, I know lately sometimes I feel like I struggle to find the light in my soul and I can't seem to climb out of the darkness.  Painting helps me rise above this darkness and seek out the light. These wings came into existence and this verse kept coming to mind to remind me that when I feel dark and alone, I'm really not.      For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.   Psalm 91:11 (KJV)  This color palette is not one that I normally use, but it fits the piece beautifully.  It is rich with texture and many subtle layers.  The middle piece is part of an antique corbel that I found.  I also found an antique bronze "l...

"Chicks Rule" This is a little encaustic piece that I just finished.  It has lots of layers and subtle colors.  The "nest" just appeared...I really didn't plan that at all, but I love those kinds of surprises.  Of course when the nest appeared, I had to add a bird.  I also added part of an old deed dating back to the early 1900's.  You can see part of it by her left arm and shoulder. Here you can get a little bit of a closer view.  The flowers were made of plaster.  I also used some stamps to embellish the piece.  Some of the stamping is more visible and some not so much. I am in love with the process of using wax (encaustic).  You can put so many rich layers and symbolism in a piece.  And above all, it's kind of a mystery as to what you will end up with! This little piece is reserved for an online auction that will be happening in May.  I welcome your comments and would love to hear from you! donnamarti...

"Dreaming of a Blue Moon" This little piece started as a demo piece for a mixed media class I was teaching/leading (I think the students teach me as much as I do them).  I started out using acrylic paint in blues and golds.  I added stencils and texture paste to create the flowers in the background.  I still wasn't sure what my subject was going to be, but that is becoming the norm for me! Pretty soon, I noticed some of the patterning on the piece and thought it looked like feathering and wings.  I decided to take a chance and see if an owl would come to life in this piece.  (This was the patterning I brought forward in her chest and wings) I decided to make her look very fluffy and sleepy.  I accented her shape with a sharpie paint pen and made the branch out of painted vintage sheet music.  The leaves were made with painted rice paper.   She is peacefully sleeping, dreaming of the blue moon! This piece meas...

"Circle of Life" "Circle of Life" This is my latest painting, fresh off the easel.  Let me tell you, this one was difficult and I feel like there were some painting and life lessons learned with this one! In Progress I liked the way it started out, but I felt it needed more texture, something to make it "pop".  So I added some molding paste and let it dry. Still....in Progress Then I started adding paint and painted foil.  I still feel like the bird faded into the background.  That little bird kept wanting to say "look at me, look at me"!! No matter how hard I tried, she faded and faded into the background.  Isn't that how we all feel sometimes...no matter how hard we try to be seen, we just fade into the background.  We yell, we scream, we ruffle our feathers, but we are not seen or heard. Then, all got quiet.  Both the bird and I quit trying so hard.  I went back to working on the bird, as well as darkening ...

Happy in Bloom This is one of my latest pieces.  It was done on a recycled wood pallet with inks, acrylics, and painted papers.  This was so much fun to do!  It was all about letting go and letting in the "happy".  I love the way the wood grain shows through portions of the paint and ink. This one is sold, but commissions are welcome.  Feel free to email me with questions or comments! saltlightwatercolors@yahoo.com donnamartinfineart.com

"Sunshine Day" I feel like I'm "painting happy" again!  This is another fun, whimsical poppy painting, fresh off the easel.  It was done with acrylic inks, paint, and hand-painted paper.  It measures 12 X 12 X 1.5 and is painted on a birch cradle board canvas.  It is finished with resin and comes ready to hang.   If you need a little sunshine, this painting is available!  Please feel free to email me with any questions, comments, or if you are interested in purchasing. saltlightwatercolors@yahoo.com donnamartinfineart.com Follow me on Facebook www.facebook.com/donnamartinfineart

"Poppy Love Letters" This painting sure didn't end up like it started out!  In the beginning, it had bright pink flowers at the top and bright green grass at the bottom.  I toned down the flowers and the grass and decided I wanted poppies as the focal point. I added some painted, torn paper and some twine.  This one sat on the easel for months before I decided what to do with it.  Sometimes you just have to sit with something until you figure out where it wants to go! This piece measures 12 X 12 and was done on a 1.5" cradle board.  It is available.  Please feel free to send me an email with questions, comments, or if you are interested in purchasing. saltlightwatercolors@yahoo.com donnamartinfineart.com Follow me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/donnamartinfineart

"Butterflies Are Free" This piece is a result of an online workshop called "Animalitos" by artist, Tracy Verdugo.  These types of paintings are really a challenge for me.  Usually I have an idea of where I'm going when I start a painting, but these are really intuitive paintings.  It starts out with bright colors of inks and paints, using symbols and marks that have meaning.  You can see below how this started out.   Then the idea is to pick out some shapes or forms in the piece....turn it upside down, sideways, etc. to "see" what might be there.  When I was making my marks and symbols, I used a wing stencil.  I began to think that it might make for a pretty butterfly wing.  I honestly couldn't see anything else, which is a major challenge for me in doing this type of work! So I began blocking out the form of the butterfly.  As soon as I started that, I knew it needed some kind of flower to land ...