Photo: Portrait of the artist Enrique Martínez Celaya in his studio, Culver City, CA, by Theo & Juliet Photography
Broadcast on KSCO AM 1080, KSCO 104.1 FM, KOMY AM 1340, and KSCO.com Live Stream.
It’s A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations – out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
The First in a Series of Three Conversations with Enrique Martínez Celaya.
Video excerpts of artist interview at Enrique’s studio in Los Angeles (with his painting The Riptide).
Watch and Listen to Part Two here
Watch and Listen to Part Three here
In the full podcast interview Enrique Martínez Celaya talks about:
– his creative environment growing up;
– what made him ultimately choose art over science as his career;
– how he sustained himself through the early years of making his way as an artist;
– his thoughts on the division between art and science;
– what it felt like to sell his first painting;
– his figurative approach to painting;
– whether it’s necessary to understand how a work came into being in order to appreciate it;
– the necessity for a mastery over technique, tools and materials;
– whether the spiritual element of art advanced by Kandinsky & Mondrian is part of the impetus of his work;
– how we can engage people in art;
– the most important character traits for commercial and artistic success as an artist;
– what keeps the passion of art alive for him.
Full Audio Interview: Press play to stream, or download podcast by clicking icon at end of audio bar.
Installation photo of “The Mirroring Land”, 2017, Galerie Judin, Berlin. From left: The Wanted Freedom (Black Milk), 2017, Oil and wax on canvas, 116 x 150 in., Private collection, Berlin. The One Who Stayed (Milk), 2017, Oil and wax on canvas, 116 x 150 in.
Ruth Copland spoke to Enrique Martínez Celaya at his inspiring studio in Los Angeles, with multiple vast rooms both to paint in and display his work, as well as a small library, and a beautiful, lush garden featuring some of his sculptures. Enrique Martinez Celaya trained as an artist as well as a physicist, and early in his career invented several patented laser devices before abandoning physics for art. An award-winning artist, he works predominantly in painting, but also in sculpture, photography, poetry and prose. His art work has been widely exhibited internationally and is held in the public collections of international institutions around the world. Enrique is the author of papers in art, poetry, philosophy, and physics and several books including ‘Collected Writings and Interviews 1990-2010’, and ‘On Art and Mindfulness: Notes from the Anderson Ranch’. He has worked in collaboration with scientists, entrepreneurs, writers, musicians and architects, including the Canadian rock-band, Cowboy Junkies, the poet and Nobel-Prize-winning chemist, Roald Hoffmann, and the novelist Mary Rakow.
View of the newly completed studio garden, Studio Enrique Martínez Celaya, Culver City, CA. From left: The Landmark, 2016, Bronze, 17 x 100 x 94 in. The Well, 2014, Bronze, 152 x 65 x 59 in., Private collection, Miami, Florida.
Born in Cuba and raised in Spain and Puerto Rico, Enrique Martinez Celaya began his formal art training at the age of 12 when he became apprentice to a painter. He developed an enduring interest in writing and philosophy whilst in the turbulent cultural and political environment of 1970s Puerto Rico. In the USA, he gained degrees in physics and art from Cornell, UC Berkeley, UC Santa Barbara, and attended the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture. He is the first person to hold the position of Provost Professor of Humanities and Arts at the University of Southern California, is a Montgomery Fellow at Dartmouth College, and a Fellow of the Los Angeles Institute for the Humanities. Enrique Martinez Celaya is committed to the education and formation of artists, and sponsors programmes for children, provides scholarships for artists, and assists schools in developing their curriculum. To this end, in 1998, he founded Whale & Star Press, which publishes books on art, poetry, art practice, and critical theory. For more information visit Enrique Martinez Celaya
Watch and Listen to Part Two here
Watch and Listen to Part Three here
“It’s A Question of Balance ® so rare among radio talk shows, lets its subjects breathe. With her discursive style and pleasingly eccentric range of curiosity, host Ruth Copland each week treats her listeners to two hours of Whole Brain Radio.”
Hampton Sides – Internationally bestselling author, award-winning journalist, and historian
