An interview with Marie Martelly
For military spouses who are constantly on the move, finding your place in an artist community can be easier said than done. Painter / collage artist / milspouse Marie Martelly is now back in the U.S. Let's all give her a warm welcome to the MilspoFAN community.
MilspoFAN: Tell us a little about yourself, your journey as a military spouse, and where you are today.
Marie: My artist and military spouse life has taken so many twists and turns. I’ve gotten to do things I would never have guessed, like live in 9 homes over 14 years, and travel to more countries than I can count right now off the top of my head. I moved a lot growing up, but Greenville, South Carolina is my home away from home, since my parents, brothers, and sister live there.
After high school, I went to the Air Force Academy, but about 18 months in, and after a lot of college-age soul-searching, I decided to transfer to McGill University in Montreal. In the end, the Air Force wasn’t the career for me, but I felt so lucky to have the opportunity to do things like go skydiving and travel to Europe and Africa during my couple of years as a cadet. I also made lifelong friends, including the friend that introduced me to my husband Ryan. The first time we met, I was just dropping by my friend’s room to borrow something and Ryan was there, making some kind of goofy comment. We were just friends for a long time before I came to my senses and noticed what a great guy he was. I’m sure it didn’t hurt that he did things like get special permission to miss a skydiving class to pick me up from the dental clinic, drugged and groggy, and took care of me after getting my wisdom teeth removed. Ah, true love.
I’m half French Canadian with a lot of family in Quebec, so transferring to university in Montreal felt like a great opportunity, and a complete 180 from life at USAFA. When Ryan and I started dating, I already knew that I was leaving Colorado, but we decided to give it a go and try it out long distance. Turns out this is a fantastic test of a military relationship, for obvious reasons.
We got legally married in 2010, right after Ryan’s graduation from the Air Force Academy at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, and two months later had a beautiful, multi-cultural ceremony with family and friends in Salt Lake City, where Ryan grew up. We both love to travel, so we spent our honeymoon backpacking through Europe for a month before moving into our first home and starting undergraduate pilot training in Del Rio, Texas. I wasn’t doing the flying, obviously, but felt like I was going through it right alongside him. I found my place in a job at the base custom framing shop, a job that I adored and continued to do at two other bases, along with volunteering and teaching a bit along the way.
Fast forward 8 moves and 3 kids later, we’ve just arrived in Las Vegas and are getting our feet under us once again. We are still waiting on our household goods, and I’m excited to get my home studio set up. Can’t wait to start exploring what I’m going to do with all of the Japanese papers, paints, and pigments that I bought during our two years living in Kyoto.
MilspoFAN: How did you become a collage artist?
Marie: I’ve been making collages since I was a teen, when an art class exercise really stuck with me, and I would keep coming back to it and playing with it as a medium. I never really called myself a “collage artist” until the past couple of years, when becoming a mom forced me to pare down my studio time and work on whatever I could, whenever I could. For me, this meant collage. What is so wonderful about it as a medium is that I can be working on my art anywhere, whether that means collecting materials, clipping elements, or gluing. When working this way, I’m not worrying about any kinds of fumes, solvents, and toddlers. I definitely have plans to go back toward my larger paintings, but I’m sure the pendulum will swing back to collage as well.
MilspoFAN: How has your role as a military spouse impacted your work- creatively, logistically, or otherwise?
Marie: Art is one of the ways that I process what is going on in my life. I’ve created two entire series of works related to being in the military. I was also commissioned to create a permanent wall installation at the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas in honor of their veteran and military spouse employees. When we were stationed in England and I was working on my Masters, I focused a lot on identity and what it means to wear the label “military spouse” when so much of your life is dictated by your partner’s service. It’s probably not a coincidence that this coincided with Ryan deploying three times in three years.
In 2018, I completed a series of artwork titled “Flying Geese,” which featured a traditional quilt motif that first entered my practice as a response to the grief experienced following a training accident in my husband’s combat search and rescue helicopter unit. From a place of heartbreak, the flying geese pattern evolved to symbolize the incredible strength and resilience of military family and community. I taught myself how to quilt not only for the visual impact, but for the tradition, comfort, and security represented in the process.
Logistically, being a military spouse has made it difficult to put down roots in an artistic community. So much of the advice I’ve received is to connect with the artists around you and grow in your community. It’s taken me years to realize that this means something a bit different for me, since my geographical community is constantly changing. It can be tough to invest the time when we are so transient, so I’m trying to get better at making the time count. I’ve been lucky to meet amazing artists and friends all over the world, but have often found it difficult to create the stability that I crave sometimes.
MilspoFAN: What’s next for you?
Marie: I’m still processing everything that the past two years living in Kyoto have meant for me and my practice. I want to explore hanging scrolls, inks, and pigments. I’m planning to start a new, larger scale series of mixed media paintings based on the collages I created during my time there. From a community standpoint, my goal is to connect with more military spouses who are also practicing artists - if that’s you, please, reach out!
MilspoFAN: What is the most practical piece of advice that you would give to other artists?
Marie: Being an artist is a long game, and don’t be discouraged by the seasons of making. Some moments will be extremely productive. Others might be slower while life is taking place. You care about your art more than anyone else, so stick with it and don’t waste energy on what you think is expected. Just keep making.
Find Marie online at:
Website: https://www.mariemartelly.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mariemartelly/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61557720393751