Archive

Printshop, Pratt Institute, Brooklyn 1990’s

Glow, 2006

First Performance, Hunter College, NYC

To Love and To Hold (Secrets of the Sea), 2013

Body Monoprint with Turmeric Ink

Drawing Plan for New Studio & Garden, 2019

Seed Library, Kale, 2024

Cotton and wool, vintage knitting needle
8 × 12 × 1 inches

Marigold Window, 2023

Weaving 1 of 3 panels in the rigid heddle loom

Welcome to the Archive!

I was recently gathering materials in the studio to prepare for a few studio visits. The process lead me to create this page as a way to share how my practice began, its path throughout the years, and where it is today. This is not a comprehensive archive as there is too much information and images to share. I will continue to add information on a regular basis.

I began my graduate studies in the early 1990’s at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and received an MFA in Sculpture and Printmaking in 1996. During those formative years, I worked with hand-colored collagraph prints. Collagraphy is a technique to make collages as plates without the traditional acid used in printmaking. I wanted to avoid the toxicity inherited in the printmaking process. I used the prints I made to create sewn, free standing paper sculptures and wall hangings, similar to textiles and weavings, which is where my practice is at the moment.

Over the years, my studio space changed and my practice moved outside working directly with nature. I went back to school and received a certification as a trainer from Hunter College, where I learned about the importance of daily movement, nutrition, and anatomy. The works I made during this time, including performance, reflect an interest in anatomy and became more ephemeral in nature. I created a rooftop garden on top of our apartment building in downtown Brooklyn, where I began growing our own food. The garden became my studio and I began working with natural dyes to make body prints and drawings.

In recent years, I went back to school again and earned a certification in environmental stewardship from Rutgers University where I learned about ecosystems, habitat and water conservation, trees, native, and invasive plants.

education
Environmental Steward Program, Rutgers University, North Brunswick, NJ
Fitness Instructor Certification (Focus: Anatomy & Nutrition), Hunter College, NYC
M.F.A. in Sculpture and Printmaking, Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY
B.A., Liberal Arts, Magna Cum Laude, University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras, PR

solo/two-person exhibitions
2015 Matthew Deleget & Rossana Martinez: With You in Constant Conversation, Schneider Museum of Art, Southern Oregon University, Ashland, OR
2010 Present, The Engine Room, Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
2009 Present, Project Space Spare Room, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia
2008 Sequence, Gallery Sonja Roesch, Houston, TX (with Susanne Ackermann)
2007 Present, SNO, Sydney, Australia
2006 Heart on Fire, H29, Brussels, Belgium (performance/installation with Matthew Deleget) Mind Games, PS, Amsterdam, The Netherlands Greetings from Brooklyn, Hebel_121, Basel, Switzerland
2004 Home, David Allen Art & Design Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2001 Obras Recientes, Galería Sín Título, San Juan, PR
2000 Recent Works, Wabash College, Crawfordsville, IN
1999 Amerige, El Museo Francisco Oller y Diego Rivera, Buffalo, NY
1998 Terra Nova, Artspace, Richmond, VA
1997 Cloths of Heaven, Berkshire Community College, Pittsfield, MA
1996 Fiber Suns, M.F.A. Thesis Exhibition, Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY

body geometry copy 3 - Matthew Edited.jpg

Body Geometry (Triangles/Skirts) with Bibi Calderaro, 2014

performances & editions
Tide, Three-person performance (collaboration with Bibi Calderaro & Julian Jackson), 2014
Body Geometry (Take Me To That Other Place), One-person performance with mountain, 2014, archival pigment print, Edition of 5, 11 x 14 inches
Body Geometry (Triangles), Two-person performance with skirts, 2013, archival pigment print, Edition of 5, 11 x 14 inches
Body Geometry (Fabric), One-person performance, 2011, archival pigment print, Edition of 5, 11 x 14 inches
See the World in Orange and Blue (Hands), One-person performance, 2011
Where Soul Meets Body, One-person performance, 2007
The Weather is Sweet, Two-person performance (collaboration with Lynne Harlow), 2007
Heart on Fire, Two-person performance (collaboration with Matthew Deleget), 2006
Glow, One-person performance, 2006
Index, Published by Justin Andrews, Melbourne, Australia, Issue No. 3, 2013, Edition of 50
Body Geometry for Sequoia Tees, 2012, Print Edition of 100
UND Jetzt IS Box, Published by IS Projects, Leiden, The Netherlands, 2008, Print Edition of 49