Martin Roth

Bio

Martin Roth works with living organisms that respond or develop according to their imminent patterns of behavior, within conditions such as a gesture or a setting initiated by him. Frequently his work examines how the introduction of an organic element can redefine a surface, an object, or it’s relation to the surrounding space. This may happen through images (objects or installations) or ephemeral gestures relayed as rumors, such as living with sheep or releasing a goldfish in the Chinese garden of the Metropolitan museum. His work can be large scale and particular to a site, but the fact that it requires the nurture of living organism makes it strangely intimate and invites the viewer if not to engage directly, at least to consider his or her relationship to the work on a human scale.