Thierry Martenon

The abstract sculptures by French sculptor Thierry Martenon stand out for their clean, elegant lines, harmonious, flowing shapes and refined, well-crafted textures. A superb play of light and shadow magnifies the wood, giving it an impression of movement.

Thierry Martenon: a love of the land and wood

“My roots are as long as the trees I work on. The environment has permeated me, inhabited me, immersed me completely.”

Thierry Martenon was born and grew up in Désert d’Entremont, a small hamlet at the northern end of the Chartreuse massif in Savoie. In this mid-mountain forest environment, the mineral element rubs shoulders with the vegetable. Woodworking is part of the culture here, and his family is no exception. As a child, Thierry used a pocket knife to make toys and small figurative objects from hazel. Over time, two things became clear to him: he would never leave this region and he would work with wood, a material he considers to be his “mother tongue”. He loves to sculpt and manipulate it, with great sensitivity to its textures, colours and scents.

After completing a training course in cabinet-making, he renovated his farmer grandparents’ barn and turned it into a workshop. For the artist, this place became an important sanctuary outside time, where he could devote himself fully to his passion. Thierry Martenon began his career designing furniture, but a pivotal meeting with professional woodturner Jean-François Escoulen changed his approach and led him to woodturning. His transition to contemporary sculpture, a field in which he is self-taught, took place gradually and included a residency at the Wood Turning Center in Philadelphia, in the United States. At first, it was difficult for him to create objects that were “useless”, a concept that didn’t correspond to his mentality. However, sculpture gave him immense freedom: he could free himself from measurements and functional constraints to give free rein to his creativity and imagination.

Today, from his studio nestling in the Prealps, his works can be found in prestigious private collections all over the world. The artist has also exhibited at renowned institutions such as the Musée National d’Histoire Naturelle in Paris and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. His clients include luxury hotels such as the Mandarin Oriental in Paris and the Crillon, for which Thierry Martenon created an impressive 32 square metre bas-relief on the ceiling.

Sources of inspiration between nature, art and design

The artist’s first and foremost source of inspiration is the natural world that surrounds him on a daily basis: the textures and shapes of mushrooms, rocks, bark, low-angled light, and sometimes even a simple shoe print in the snow can give him the idea for his next sculpture.

Thierry Martenon admires the work of David Nash, Andy Goldsworthy, Henry Moore, Constantin Brancusi and Pierre Soulages, as well as contemporary artists and designers. His quest for clean, simple shapes is guided by the emblematic principle formulated by Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe, architect and director of the Bauhaus: “Less is more“.

A creative process that starts with drawing

The contemporary sculptor has a deep respect for wood, which he sees as a noble, rare and ancient material that should not be wasted. That’s why his creative process always begins with drawings and sketches. This stage, which can last several days, allows him to eliminate less relevant ideas and retain only those that are worth developing. Once the ideal shape emerges on paper, the artist makes a cardboard template to actual scale, reminiscent of the patterns used in fashion. For his most complex sculptures, Thierry Martenon also creates a miniature model in order to study the shapes, curves and volumes in greater depth in three dimensions.

“Drawing is gymnastics between the brain and the hand. For me, drawing is already sculpting.” Thierry Martenon

Techniques combining tradition and innovation

Thanks to his in-depth knowledge of the region, Thierry Martenon is able to find “remarkable trees” for his creations. Its extremely demanding selection process focuses on trees with dense, compact wood and slow, regular growth to ensure a uniform heartwood. Thierry Martenon works exclusively with local species such as maple, ash, walnut, spruce and elm. For the sculptor, each tree is unique, like each individual, and represents a new encounter each time.

Next comes wood cutting. The sculptor uses traditional woodworking tools to first outline the general shape of the piece, then refine it: saw, chainsaw, planer, mallet, plane, gouges, jointer plane, riffler, marking gauge, rasp, sander… Although direct carving leaves little room for error, his expertise enables him to approach this phase with confidence and efficiency, choosing the most appropriate tools to achieve the desired result. Unlike the carpenter, Thierry Martenon works against the grain to create grain. Tools, materials and gestures play a central role in his work.

“Before becoming an artist sculptor, you’re a craftsman; know-how is essential.”

Once the shape is complete, work begins on the texture. The sculptor allows himself to be guided by a more instinctive feeling for the wood, through the sense of touch: “My hands are my eyes. You have to touch it to see the defects.” It is also at this stage that he applies the techniques he has developed himself: brushing, burning, polishing, sandblasting, engraving, cerusing, using Indian ink patinas, lacquers and acids, etc. Although the effects used vary, Thierry Martenon always favours a monochrome finish. His ultimate aim is to capture light in a unique way, playing on contrasts with shadows to magnify each sculpture and reveal all the depth of his favourite material.

Photo : Monica Dalmasso