Alfred MARTIN (1888-1950): « paysage lumineux gaumais ou ardennais »

Trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Liège, Alfred Martin was a gifted pupil of Adrien de Witte and, during the first half of the 20th century, he was both a painter, an engraver and an illustrator appreciated by his contemporaries. Encouraged by Émile Berchmans, Armand Rassenfosse and Auguste Donnay, this representative of Walloon art acquired real notoriety thanks to the ease with which he approached all genres and subjects. Liège, the city, its popular quarters, its traditions, its folklore, its processions have had the honor of his paintings, as well as the scenes of daily life. The landscapes of the Ourthe, the Amblève and the Vesdre are as many playgrounds that the watercolourist appreciates; it also represents very well the snowy landscapes and gives many interpretations of views of villages. Church interiors also have his predilection. His triptych in the church of Saint-Denis, in Liège (1926), still bears witness to his interest in religious painting, like the one intended for the basilica of Chèvremont (1929). His nudes as much as his expressive portraits constitute an additional range of his talent. Louis Banneux, Noël Dessard and Charles Delchevalerie, in particular, called on Martin to illustrate books devoted to Ardennes legends, coal working or honoring colleagues. Xylographer, Alfred Martin is still the author of posters (especially for the SNCB) and many drawings that he made in his small workshop in Liège. Private Archives Center of Wallonia, Destrée Institute, Paul PIRON Press Reviews, Dictionary of Belgian visual artists of the 19th and 20th centuries, Lasne, 2003, t. II, p. 136 Walloon Life, IV, n°252, 1950, p. 290 Excerpt from the site Knowing Wallonia Paul Delforge, May 2016