John Martinson
BIOGRAPHY
John Martinson was born in St. Peter, Minnesota. He has a degree in sociology from Gustavus Adolphus College and studied art at U.W.
Madison from 1974 to 1976. He and his wife moved to Galena in 1979 to operate the Galena Blacksmith Shop and Gallery. In 1986 he opened his own studio, which has grown to become West Street Sculpture Park, with more than two dozen large (and many smaller) welded steel sculptures
tucked into two acres of paths and woods on Galena’s south side. Martinson has produced a large body of work over the last 30 years. He
has exhibited in two-person shows at the Dubuque Museum of Art, the Harry Nohr Gallery (UW-Platteville), the Beverly Art Center (Chicago), and the Quad City Artscenter. Public sculptures include Spare Time(Madison, Wisconsin), Cornstalks (Albany, Wisconsin), and Trinity Cross
(St. Peter, Minnesota). He has been a participant in Sculpture on the Plaza ’92 (Milwaukee), Reflective Spaces (Chicago), Sculpture on Second
(Cedar Rapids, Iowa), Some Assembly Required (Freeport, Illinois), the Dubuque Museum of Art Biennial Show, and Voices from the Warehouse
District (Dubuque, Iowa). Martinson also has sculpted many privately commissioned pieces.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
My studio is a wood-framed building with high ceilings. Outside are many shelves. On them are the things I use to make sculpture. They are:
bike parts, buggy parts, car parts
old wheels, new wheels, tractor seats
hammer heads, axe heads, pitchforks
lug wrenches, monkey wrenches, kids’ toys
shovels, saws, gears
faucets, augers, bits
pipes, chains, springs
round stock, flat stock, square stock
lanterns, lawnmowers, and lightning rods
I mix them with imagination, a little creativity, and out comes the unpredictable, the repurposed, the art.
John Martinson was born in St. Peter, Minnesota. He has a degree in sociology from Gustavus Adolphus College and studied art at U.W.
Madison from 1974 to 1976. He and his wife moved to Galena in 1979 to operate the Galena Blacksmith Shop and Gallery. In 1986 he opened his own studio, which has grown to become West Street Sculpture Park, with more than two dozen large (and many smaller) welded steel sculptures
tucked into two acres of paths and woods on Galena’s south side. Martinson has produced a large body of work over the last 30 years. He
has exhibited in two-person shows at the Dubuque Museum of Art, the Harry Nohr Gallery (UW-Platteville), the Beverly Art Center (Chicago), and the Quad City Artscenter. Public sculptures include Spare Time(Madison, Wisconsin), Cornstalks (Albany, Wisconsin), and Trinity Cross
(St. Peter, Minnesota). He has been a participant in Sculpture on the Plaza ’92 (Milwaukee), Reflective Spaces (Chicago), Sculpture on Second
(Cedar Rapids, Iowa), Some Assembly Required (Freeport, Illinois), the Dubuque Museum of Art Biennial Show, and Voices from the Warehouse
District (Dubuque, Iowa). Martinson also has sculpted many privately commissioned pieces.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
My studio is a wood-framed building with high ceilings. Outside are many shelves. On them are the things I use to make sculpture. They are:
bike parts, buggy parts, car parts
old wheels, new wheels, tractor seats
hammer heads, axe heads, pitchforks
lug wrenches, monkey wrenches, kids’ toys
shovels, saws, gears
faucets, augers, bits
pipes, chains, springs
round stock, flat stock, square stock
lanterns, lawnmowers, and lightning rods
I mix them with imagination, a little creativity, and out comes the unpredictable, the repurposed, the art.
