Martin Blank has admired the grace and flow of the human form since childhood, digging into clay at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts at age 13. In 1984, Martin earned a BFA from Rhode Island School of Design. That same year, Blank moved west to begin his professional career in Seattle, working at the center for studio glass and learning from the driving force behind it; Mr. Dale Chihuly. Blank worked on the Chihuly team, bringing his infectious enthusiasm and courageous desire to push the material for several years, all the while establishing his own contributions to the glass movement.
Blank's early figurative work swiftly solidified his place as a premier figurative sculptor working in glass. Blank then expanded his contributions to the contemporary glass scene in 2001 when he introduced his sensual and fluid abstract landscapes.
Says Blank, “I am an intuitive artist. I work on the way forms relate to each other to cut a line in space that flows, turns and carries the eye around the piece. The forms reveal a negative space that is as vital and potent as the actual objects. My sculptural work is as much about the void as the mass.”
Martin Blank's work is about carving space. From the commanding musculature of a male torso, to the sensual curve of a vibrant scarlet abstract element, to the placid elegance of monumental glass trees, Martin Blank's creations evoke a direct connection to natural forms. He has created multiple installations in prestigious corporate lobbies and continues to provide impressive public art installations, one of which Fluent Steps, can be seen at the Tacoma Museum of Glass. Fluent Steps is a 200 feet long outdoor sculpture. Martin Blank continues to push the boundaries of glass as a material in contemporary fine art.
Martin Blank just finished working with Silverstein Properties to create a two monumental glass sculptures for the courtyard of the Four Seasons Hotel New York, New York. Scheduled to open 2017.