Lydia Martin

Professor, Foundation Studies

Phone: 617-994-4288
Email: lmartin@suffolk.edu

Office: 75 Arlington St., 2nd floor - room 219

Education

Diploma (MFA Equivalent), Painting and Drawing, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts
Directed Master's Studies in Pastel and Painting, Massachusetts College of Art & Design
BA, Fine Arts, West Chester University

Courses Taught at The School of Art & Design

Foundation Drawing I, Foundation Drawing II, Painting

Teaching Philosophy

Students are wonderful teachers, mainly because they are so aggressive about getting you to take a stand on something, and then equally aggressive about wanting you to change your mind. I get the students to realize this about one another, and encourage them to exploit this strength creatively. Drawing and painting are first of all crafts with a vocabulary of materials and methods that students learn to utilize. Beyond this, it is a profession that involves constant revaluation of both the artist's personal accomplishments and public context. In order to enable a fuller appreciation of this, I try to nurture an atmosphere of healthy competition in the classroom, wherein students begin to honor their own pace while respecting the achievements of established artists. In practice, my teaching strikes a balance between one-on-one consultations and open critiques. Though courses may differ, these general principles have so far grounded my classroom experience.

Recent Professional Highlights

  • 2013: Awarded 2013 Marion and Jasper Whiting Faculty Fellowship Study Abroad. Research on circle of artists surrounding the premiere performance of Stravinsky's Ballet "Rite of Spring" on May 29, 1913
  • 2011: Awarded "Outstanding School of Art & Design Faculty of the Year" Suffolk University Student Government Leadership Awards
  • 2006: Exhibition of book cover painting, "The Border," Suffolk University Poetry Center -- Presentation by Poet, Professor and Painter: Reading, Exhibition and Book Signing, Remembering the Young Women of Juarez. Reading of book of poetry “Missing Women of Juarez” by Chilean poet, Marjorie Agosin and lecture by Suffolk Professor of Spanish, Celeste K. Cooperman.  
  • 2002: Re-Presenting Representation V, Arnot Art Museum of Contemporary Realism, Elmira, NY
    Juror, John O'Hearn
  • 2000: Salmagundi First Prize for Oil Painting, Catherine Lorillard Wolfe Arts Club Millennium International Exhibition, National Arts Club, New York, NY   

Professional Affiliations

Member, Catherine Lorrilard Wolfe Arts Club at the National Arts Club
Contributing Artist, DeCordova Museun Corporate Art Loan Program
Member, Fellowship of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts
Artist Member, The Brooklyn Art Project  

Download full resume (PDF)