Martin has been fascinated by the male figure for many years. He paints in the traditional way of Oil on canvas. He prefers oils and finds the medium sympathetic to the way he works. He often changes the composition during the process of paining the figure as the relationship between sitter develops and unravels. During art school, he discovered the work of Keith Vaughan who’s male nudes in the landscape were revolutionary for the era he painted in when it was illegal to make images of a homosexual nature. The figure is a wonderful subject to draw and paint. Painting from life have given Martin an opportunity to capture something about them, including intimacy and sexual energy. For Martin, drawing and painting is as much about him as it is the model. Over the past few years, Martin has been focussed on people who have fled their countries seeking safety in the UK. Painting is about searching for some sort of order and a response to the world which is chaotic. He usually paint single figures which are introspective, reflective and revealing. Aerial views of figures are something that Martin has been focussing over the past 20 years. It’s still an untapped compositional device that he keeps returning to. He paints figures because there is a tension, a poise and balance in the human body.