Bobby C. Martin
Artist Bio 2023


BC Martin head shot     

Bobby C. Martin is an artist/educator/facilitator who works out of his Martin Mountain Studio near West Siloam Springs, Oklahoma. Martin’s artwork is exhibited and collected internationally and has been featured in numerous group and solo exhibitions. His current project, Altars of Reconciliation, is a three-person show featuring Martin, Erin Shaw (Chickasaw) and Tony Tiger (Sac & Fox/Muscogee/Seminole) that focuses on the experiences of the artists as Native Americans and as Christians, and is currently traveling throughout the United States. Martin’s work is in numerous museum collections, including the Philbrook Museum and Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Museum of the Great Plains in Lincoln, Nebraska, and the Georgia Art Museum in Athens, Georgia. An enrolled citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in Oklahoma, Martin currently holds a Professor of Visual Arts position at John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, and he frequently leads printmaking workshops and artist retreats at his studio and at various museums and art centers around the world.

Exhibition Record | CV
Education
1995
Master of Fine Arts, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville; Printmaking major, drawing minor
Received a College Art Association Professional Development Fellowship in 1994.
1992
Bachelor of Arts, Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, Oklahoma; Dual major: Fine Art and Native American Studies

Professional Experience
2011–present
Owner, Martin Mountain Studio LLC | Fine Art Press and Studio/Workshop Facility,  West Siloam Springs, Oklahoma
2008–present
Professor of Visual Arts and Gallery Director, College of Bible, Humanities & Art, John Brown University, Siloam Springs, Arkansas
2000–2008
Associate Professor of Art and Art Program Coordinator, Department of Communication & Art, College of Liberal Arts, Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, Oklahoma
1995–2000
Graphic Design Coordinator, Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Exhibition Record
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2023
The Ancestors Are Present
Arts on Main, Van Buren, Arkansas; ARTesian Gallery, Chickasaw Nation, Sulphur, Oklahoma
2021
Some Things Sacred, Art Ventures Gallery, Fayetteville, Arkansas
2018-19
But You Don’t Look Indian…, Art Ventures Gallery, Fayetteville, Arkansas; Dr. J. W. Wiggins Native American Gallery, University of Arkansas Little Rock
2011
Back in the Day, East Gallery, Oklahoma State Capitol, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
2008
Through Our Ancestors’ Eyes: Art and Photos by Bobby C. Martin & the Checotah Creek Indian Community, Checotah Indian Community Center, Checotah, Oklahoma
2006
The Family Photo Album, Mullins Library, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas
1997
Snapshots from the Family Photo Album, Muscogee Nation Elderly Nutrition Center, Okmulgee, Oklahoma; Holliman Gallery, Walter Arts Center, Holland Hall School, Tulsa, Oklahoma
1995
Dwight I.T.S.: The Pursuit of Civilization. Master of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibition Fine Arts Center Gallery, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas
1994
Drawing Closer: Looking Back. Recent Graphic Works of Bobby C. Martin; Southern Plains Indian Museum, Anadarko, Oklahoma

PUBLIC ART INSTALLATIONS
2022-23
Unbroken: The Council Oak Story
Council Oak Comprehensive Healthcare, Tulsa.
Multi-panel site-specific installation and mural located in the facilty’s main entrance lobby; commissioned by the Muscogee Nation

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2023
Altars of Reconciliation, a collaborative exhibition with Erin Shaw and Tony Tiger.
Hardesty Arts Center (AHHA), Tulsa; Seminole Nation Museum, Wewoka, Oklahoma; Windgate Gallery, John Brown University, Siloam Springs, Arkansas; Oklahoma City University; on tour nationally through 2025
Beyond the Whitewash, a collaborative exhibtion organized by Tulsa Artists Fellow Shelby Head and curated by Shelby and Welana Fields, Living Arts Tulsa
Convergence: Indigenous Exchange & Encounter, Craft Alliance, St. Louis, Missouri

2022
Chiefs, Clans & Kin, Living Arts of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Choctaw Cultural Center, Durant, Oklahoma
Contemporary Indigeneity 2022, Great Plains Art Museum, Lincoln, Nebraska

2021
Collective Impressions: Modern Native American Printmakers, Georgia Museum of Art, Athens, Georgia. (2021-2022)
Clan Stories, Exhibit C Gallery, Oklahoma City. (2021-2022)
Speak: Speak While You Can, Living Arts of Tulsa (2020); Seminole Nation Museum, Wewoka, Oklahoma

2020
Mvskoke Voices, Seminole Nation Museum,
Re/Convening: Native Arts of Oklahoma, Hardesty Arts Center (AHHA), Tulsa, Oklahoma
Protection, virtual exhibition curated by the New Mexico Museum of Art, Santa Fe.
Borders & Boundaries: The Blurred Edges of Decolonisation, traveling exhibition: ArtVentures, Fayetteville, Arkansas (2018); Seminole Nation Museum

2019
Arkansas Territory Collection, regional traveling exhibition to venues in Arkansas and Oklahoma.
Reclamations, group exhibition organized by Art Ventures NW Arkansas Faulkner Performing Arts Center Gallery, Fayetteville, AR.

2018
Return from Exile: Contemporary Southeastern Indian Art, national traveling exhibition; opened at the Lyndon House Arts Center in Athens, Georgia, August 2015 and traveled through May 2018

2017
The Art of Resistance & Resurgence, Goldsmiths, University of London, London, UK
Native Hearts: Respond & Reflect, organized by the Southeastern Indian Artists Association, PAC Gallery, Tulsa Performing Arts Center
The Evolution of Color in Oklahoma Indian Art, Zarrow Center for Art & Education Gallery, Tulsa
Stories, Visions & Memory: Erin Shaw, Tony Tiger and Bobby C. Martin, Mullins Library, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas

2016
Jews Rock! An invitational group show of regional artists exhibiting painted guitars celebrating Jewish rock artists. Sherwin Miller Museum of Jewish Art, Tulsa.

2015
Ancient Ways: Modern Forms. Sherwin Miller Museum of Jewish Art, Tulsa
Re-Riding History: From the Southern Plains to the Matanzas Bay, national traveling exhibition, Crisp-Ellert Art Museum Flagler College, St. Augustine, Florida; Wright Museum of Art, Beloit College, Beloit, Wisconsin; A.D. Gallery, University of North Carolina-Pembroke, Pembroke North Carolina; All My Relations Gallery, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

2014
Shifting Focus: Historic Photography, Contemporary Art. Philbrook Downtown, Tulsa
Here & Now: Contemporary Native Art of Oklahoma. 108|Contemporary Gallery, Tulsa
Concept: Me. Self-portrait exhibition curated by Tony Tiger, MAINSITE Gallery, Norman, Oklahoma

2013
Art From Indian Territory: Contemporary Native Art from Oklahoma, All My Relations Gallery, Minneapolis, Minnesota
24 Works on Paper, traveling exhibition of work by living Oklahoma artists, produced by Individual Artists of Oklahoma and the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition. On tour across Oklahoma through 2015.
Concept/OK: Art in Oklahoma. Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition. Hardesty Arts Center (AHHA), Tulsa, Oklahoma.

2012
H2OK: Native Responses to Water Issues in Oklahoma. MAINSITE Gallery, Norman Oklahoma; Bacone College, Muskogee, Oklahoma

2011
Influence of the Cross: The Incorporation of Christian Iconography and Symbolism in American Indian Art. Dr. J. W. Wiggins Native American Gallery, Little Rock, Arkansas
Anticipation of the Future: Contemporary American Indian Art. Arkansas Studies Institute Main Gallery, Central Arkansas Library System, Little Rock

2010
Perceptions of Being: Selected Works by Tony Tiger & Bobby C. Martin. McCombs Gallery, Bacone College, Muskogee, Oklahoma;
John Brown University Art Gallery, Siloam Springs, Arkansas; Northeastern State University Gallery, Tahlequah

2005
Picturing Change: The Impact of Ledger Drawing on Native American Art. Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire

2003
Something More Than “Art”: Handworks by American Indians. Utsunomiya Museum of Art, Utsunomiya, Japan

2000
Who Stole the Teepee? National traveling exhibition, sponsored by the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian and ATLATL. Opened at the NMAI, New York City, NY, and concluded at the Museum of the Institute of American Indian Art, Santa Fe, NM in summer 2002.

1998
New Art of the West 6. Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, Indianapolis, IN.
Children of the Sun: Euchee Culture & Tradition. Gilcrease Museum.

1995
Gilcrease Museum Native American Invitational & Masters Exhibition. Gilcrease Museum.

1994
Dispelling the Myths: Controlling the Image. American Indian Community House Gallery/Museum, New York City, New York.
Continuity and Change: The Effects of Removal and Relocation on the Culture and Art of the Southeastern Tribes of Oklahoma. Philbrook Museum of Art.

Independently Curated Exhibitions
2019- ongoing
Altars of Reconciliation, a collaborative exhibition with Erin Shaw and Tony Tiger.
 Hardesty Arts Center (AHHA), Tulsa; Seminole Nation Museum, Wewoka, Oklahoma; Windgate Gallery, John Brown University, Siloam Springs, Arkansas; Oklahoma City University; through 2025 Altars is a rentable traveling exhibition available through the artists
2020-2021
Speak: Speak While You Can, Living Arts, Tulsa. Co-curated with Tony Tiger.
2019-2021
Altars of Reconciliation, traveling exhibition co-curated with Erin Shaw and Tony Tiger.  Hardesty Arts Center (AHHA), Tulsa; Seminole Nation Museum, Wewoka; Windgate Gallery, John Brown University, Siloam Springs.
2018-2020
Borders & Boundaries: The Blurred Edges of Decolonisation, traveling exhibition co-curated with Robert Peters, Belfast, U.K. ArtVentures, Fayetteville, Arkansas; Dr. J. W. Wiggins Native American Gallery, University of Arkansas Little Rock
2015-2018
Return from Exile: Contemporary Southeastern Indian Art, national traveling exhibition  co-curated with Tony Tiger; 10 venues across the southeastern and western U.S.
2012
Indian Ink: Printmaking from the J.W. Wiggins Collection of Native American Art, Sequoyah National Research Center Gallery, Little Rock, Arkansas.

Selected Public Collections
Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa
The Dr. J.W. Wiggins Native American Art Collection, Little Rock, Arkansas
The Seminole Nation Museum, Wewoka, Oklahoma
Muscogee Nation of Oklahoma
Sam Noble Museum, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma
The Heritage Center Permanent Collection, Pine Ridge, South Dakota
Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire
Georgia Museum of Art, Athens, Georgia
Southern Plains Indian Museum, Anadarko, Oklahoma
The Great Plains Art Museum, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
The Sherwin Miller Museum of Jewish Art, Tulsa
Western Carolina University Museum of Fine Art, Cullowhee, North Carolina
First Americans Museum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
The Edd Guarino Collection
Creek Council House Museum, Okmulgee, Oklahoma
Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma
Checotah Creek Indian Community, Checotah, Oklahoma

Fellowships
Eccles Center Research Fellowship, British Library, London, UK, 2021-22.
Wachiay Studio Visiting Artist Fellowship, Courtenay, British Columbia, Canada, 2019.
College Art Association Professional Development Fellowship, 1994.

Gallery and Museum Shop Representation
Art Ventures, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Exhibit C Gallery, Oklahoma City
Wyld Gallery, Austin, Texas
Gilcrease Museum Shop, Tulsa
Museum of Native American History, Bentonville, Arkansas

Selected Publications
Writing Their Bodies: Restoring Rhetorical Relations at the Carlisle Indian School, Sarah Klotz, Utah State University Press, 2021.
Native Voices: Art for a New Understanding, Exhibition Catalog, Crystal Bridges Museum, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2018.
Re-Riding History: From the Southern Plains to the Matanzas Bay, Exhibition Catalog, published by The Trout Gallery, The Art Museum of Dickinson College, 2018.
Return from Exile: Contemporary Southeastern Indian Art, published by the Southeastern Indian Artists Association to accompany the traveling exhibition. Fall 2015, reprinted Summer 2017.
First American Art Magazine, feature article written by Roy Boney, Jr., appeared in the Fall 2015 issue.
American Indian Quarterly, cover art for four consecutive issues, published by University of Nebraska Press, 2015.
Gilcrease Journal, “Layered Materials, Layered Meanings”, published by Gilcrease Museum, March 2014.
Concept/OK: Art in Oklahoma, Exhibition Catalog, Hardesty Arts Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma, 2013.
The Dr. J.W. Wiggins Native American Art Collection, Volume I, Sequoyah National Research Center, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Little Rock, Arkansas, 2012.
Something More Than Art: Handworks by American Indians, Exhibition Catalog, Utsunomiya Museum of Art, Utsunomiya, Japan, 2006.
Treasures of Gilcrease, Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, 2003.
Who Stole the Tee Pee? Exhibition Catalog, Atlatl, Inc., edited by Fred Nahwooksy and Richard Hill, Sr., 2000.
New Art of the West 6, Exhibition Catalog, edited by Jennifer Complo McNutt, Eiteljorg Museum, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1998.

Selected Writings
Title panel for Return from Exile exhibition, August 2015
Guest Essay for Full Consciousness of Being, Tony Tiger solo exhibition, Museum of Contemporary Native Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico, January 2014
Guest Essay for Gilcrease Journal, “Layered Materials, Layered Meanings”, published by Gilcrease Museum, March 2014

Community Involvement
Former President and Treasurer, Southeastern Indian Artists Association (SEIAA), Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Vice -President, Heart of America Artists Asssiciation, SIloam Springs, Arkansas
Board Member, Five Civilized Tribes Museum, Muskogee, Oklahoma
Founding Board Member, Arts Council of Tahlequah
Advisory Council Member, Cherokee Arts Center, Tahlequah
Member, Christians in the Visual Arts (CIVA)
Member, Southern Graphics Council International
Original Member, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas

Public Speaking
Gallery Conversation presenter in conjunction with Native Voices: Art for a New Understanding, Crystal Bridges Museum, November 2018.
Interviewed by PBS NewsHour for a feature segment on Crystal Bridges Museum, May 2018.
Presentation and workshop in conjunction with Return from Exile exhibition, University of North Carolina Pembroke. March 2018.
Presentation in conjunction with Return from Exile exhibition, Contemporary Native Art Symposium, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, North Carolina. November 2017.
Presenter, along with Tony Tiger, at the American Indian Workshop, London, UK. Entitled “Telling Our Own Story,” the topic was our curation project, Return from Exile. July 2017.
Panel discussion participant, held in conjunction with the Picturing the Americas exhibition at Crystal Bridges Musem of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas. January 2016.
Curator’s presentation and panel discussion participant. Symposium held in conjunction with the opening of Return from Exile at the Lyndon House Arts Center, Athens, Georgia. August 2015.
Panel discussion participant. Northeastern State University’s 42nd Annual Symposium on the American Indian in Tahlequah OK. The panel participants discussed the topic “Southeastern Indian Art: Building Community and Raising Awareness”, April 2014.
Artist presentation. Oklahoma Art Guild, Oklahoma Contemporary Art Center, Oklahoma City, October 2014.

Public Programs
Coordinates and leads numerous live screenprinting “Print Actions” at museums, universities and other locations in the U.S. and internationally.
Coordinates and leads printmaking and encaustic workshops across the U.S. and internationally.