Rony James Martin

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Testimony 17th September 2009

I enjoy the freedom of using just my hands and a few tools to make art. When I work with fake materials like plastic grass, fruits, vines etc. or with fake processes, like making grass grow inside a briefcase, it is not just the material or the process itself that matters.

In my work, I am creating an alternative opening into feeling the processes of our life. I am looking at an illusion of nature. For some, at first glance, my work may seem to be nothing more than a well designed decoration. Please look again. Art is not independent of its surroundings. This is nature as I see it, feel it, smell it, treasure, and dream about it.

Rony James Martin

 

Rony James Martin

Untitled
Wooden bench, fake grass - 6 ft x 3 ft x 1.5 inches

 

Rony James Martin

Untitled
Natural grass, briefcase - 1 ft 4 inches x 1 ft

 

05th June 2008

I am very grateful to Beacon house National University and South Asia Foundation for providing me with a once in a lifetime opportunity of, availing this scholarship. I have always felt that this scholarship is a big chance bestowed upon me from God in order to improve myself and in return promote art and wisdom in my own land. Through the scholarships given to us, we realize that the boundaries between South Asian countries are beyond the physical; they have human, emotional and spiritual value.

This visit has been full of love, peace and content. It has been an experience I will never forget and will relive throughout. The education I have garnered hasn’t been limited to art only but has been spread over a vast horizon. Beacon house National University is indeed a commendable and respectable institution and it is a privilege for anyone who happens to be in its alumni list.

Madam Salima Hashmi has been a mother-figure to me, someone who has endured and shared my pain in the toughest of times and has always been there for me. Rashid Rana, Huma Mulji, Ayaz Jokhio, Risham Syed, Masooma Syed, Mehboob Shah, Malcolm Hutcheson and Mariam Suhail, David Alesworth are some of the honorable teachers who have imparted their knowledge to me in my educational endeavors.

One personality which cannot go unmentioned is Ambassador MadanJeet Singh (SAF), the noble person responsible for me being a part of this university to a large extent. I’d like to end this note on another general thanks to one and all, which may seem small in paper, but holds a great amount of space in my heart.