By Marie-Anne Destrebecq-Martin

As the fourth son of the painter Henri Martin, Jacques Martin-Ferrières started learning from his father when he was very young. He devoted himself definitively to his great love, painting, once he had completed his studies in chemistry. These studies gave him an insight into the nature of pigments to the point where he was able to mix his own colours.

His earliest paintings were indoor scenes and portraits of women depicted against wide landscapes composed of expressive brush-strokes. He was inquisitive about everything: he was a musician and played both the cello and piano well; he loved going to the theatre and to concerts where he sketched face after face with a pencil that was as confident as it was witty. His first exhibitions at the Salon (1920, 1923) were a great success. In 1924 he was awarded a grant to undertake the traditional trip to Italy where he painted Venice, Florence, Rome and Assisi. This trip gave him a taste for travel and henceforth he spent his time criss-crossing Europe: Spain, Italy, Greece, Croatia, Scotland, Holland, Germany, Switzerland. He spent the summer travelling, taking up his paintbrush whenever a scene caught his eye, and the winter in his studio pouring his travel experiences into his paintings. Flowers often caught the attention of his eye for colour, whether in his own garden where they were deliberately planted to nourish future compositions, or in bunches gathered for the studio. In 1928 he undertook to decorate the church of St Christophe de Javel in Paris. The success of this series of paintings brought other commissions from St-Ouen, Romans-sur-Isère, Montauban and the church of St Louis in Marseille.

But the Great War halted his magnificent progress. As a result of injuries sustained during the war, Jacques gradually lost the sight of one eye. He would only resume painting in I956, but this disability put an end to the large compositions in which he had expressed his vitality, talent and warmth tempered with wit that had been expressed so eloquently. He nevertheless resumed travelling, particularly in the United States where he exhibited regularly. He would continue painting and exhibiting until his death. Martin-Ferrières’ landscapes and flower paintings are as lively and colourful as they were in his lifetime. It is as though he might walk into the room at any moment…