Artist Focus: Martha Pettigrew

A focus on the artwork of Martha Pettigrew

Martha Pettigrew attended the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with an emphasis on painting and printmaking. For six years she served as scientific illustrator for the Nebraska State Museum. She has been a bronze sculptor since 1993.Foothills Farm, oil, 36 x 48”Pettigrew took up painting again in 2003 after several visits to San Miguel de Allende. Starting with simple street scenes, she quickly added other architectural subjects to here repertoire, including barns, old churches and schoolhouses. She describes her unique and recognizable style as minimalist and precisionist with a little regionalism thrown in.Abandoned, oil, 24 x 36”

Safely Baled, oil, 36 x 24”Her non-objective abstract paintings feature bold color field compositions. These may be inspired by natural forms or events, or may start with broad, thoughtfully placed brushstrokes. She works with the positive and negative spaces until an interesting balance is achieved, simultaneously fine-tuning the color juxtapositions. These pieces, powerful in their simplicity, will make a statement in any space. —