Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjF2HQezLPI&list=PLOQvdw7d0cd9RZZkd2lZy2hmrnJv-cfLI&index=57
Evan: What are your thoughts on Art Walk, having grown up here and now that you're a resident artist in FAT Village? What are your thoughts on Art Walk?
Martine: Oh, that’s nerve-wracking! I think it’s a really great thing. When I was growing up, we didn’t really have much of an art district or scene at all. Now, we have this growing, awesome little local art population, and it's really amazing to be able to connect with the public. You know, everyday people can come check out the art and see what’s happening in the South Florida or Fort Lauderdale art scene. I think Art Walk has really made it thrive.
Evan: Absolutely, and I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again—it’s not the development that made FAT Village and MASS District great; it’s the artists that made these arts districts great. Yes, we know there’s development, things are changing, and we won’t get into gentrification and all that, but don’t discredit the hard work that talented artists like Martine, Julio Green, Francisco, Mario, and everyone else have put into cultivating something special here in FAT Village, MASS District, and downtown Fort Lauderdale. I give you a lot of credit and kudos—it’s not easy, and you should be rewarded. Hopefully, we’ll bring some more people by this weekend.
What’s next for you? How can people reach out to engage with you, and what are you interested in doing?
Martine: I do a lot of commissioned work, mostly pet portraits. So, if anyone wants a portrait, I’m available! But in the future, I’d love to have my own gallery space and work with the public by hosting art classes or special events. Hopefully, that will happen in the future, but for now, I just want to keep creating art that will outlive me.
Evan: Amen! And this mermaid painting is eternal—it will live forever. This is a great canvas, by the way. That leads me to mention, there are only so many artist studios here in FAT Village. You have Amanda Schaeffer, Julio, Francisco, Mario, Michelle, and a few others like Judah Schwab over there. Then you have Garage 22, the Far Gallery, which is more of a gallery, and the project space. But there really aren’t that many studios here.
This realization led my partner, Daniel Bardot, and me to identify a few issues affecting the art landscape here in Fort Lauderdale and Broward County. One of the biggest issues is the lack of studio space, especially safe and affordable spaces. Yet, there are vacant commercial spaces tied up in bureaucracy or the permitting process, or they’re just too expensive. We view art as a problem solver, so we decided to create an initiative to activate these vacant spaces and turn them into affordable artist studios. We’re calling it "Zero Empty Spaces," and we’re making it available for $2 per square foot for artists, including water, electricity, and insurance.
We also market it, program it, handle public relations, press releases, and get artists exposure on platforms like NPR and WLRN. This initiative furthers our mission of establishing Broward County and Fort Lauderdale as a destination for both the public to view and interact with art and for artists to live, work, and create. It would be really unfortunate if talented artists like Martine weren’t able to pursue their craft due to a lack of space. Not everyone has the ability to create at home or has the space they need. So, if you’re an artist interested in affordable studio spaces, you can log on to zeroemptyspaces.com or email us at info@zeroemptyspaces.com.
If you know of any vacant spaces or know someone who does, we want them! We’ll activate the space, market it, and handle everything—there’s no charge to the owner. It’s just another one of our initiatives, alongside Choose954 and our Art Walks, to really help the arts and culture scene in Broward County.
Where can people find you on social media and online?
Martine: You can find me on Instagram at @martine and on my website at www.martineart.com.
Evan: You can find Martine this Saturday, July 27th, and every last Saturday of the month at the FAT Village Art Walk. We’ve got a couple of other things happening as well. If you found the Zero Empty Spaces concept interesting, our grand opening is on Thursday, August 1st, at our first location on Las Olas, 914 East Las Olas Boulevard, which was formerly the New River Fine Art Gallery. It’s next to Café Europa. You won’t miss it! The event is from 7–9 p.m., with a ribbon-cutting at 7:30 and opening remarks at 8:00. It’s a free event, but we ask that you RSVP so we can plan accordingly.
The following week, we’re hosting our next AF Creative Zen event in our Zero Empty Spaces location. AF Creative Zen is a free monthly breakfast lecture series where we bring in speakers with thought-provoking and inspiring stories. Our next speaker is Dr. Hack Redmond, a former boxer, surgeon, filmmaker, startup founder, and author. It’s on Friday, August 9th. Doors open at 8:30 a.m., and the talk starts at 9:00 a.m., with free coffee and breakfast.
The night before that, we’re supporting Raw Storytelling, a live true-story event in downtown Fort Lauderdale. You can find out more at rawstorytelling.org.
Lastly, we’re still running the Choose954 Local Artist Discovery Series at Yolo in downtown Fort Lauderdale every Wednesday night. We give the artist a canvas and a table, and we don’t charge them or take a commission. We market it to connect artists with the downtown Las Olas crowd. It’s a great opportunity, especially for artists who might not get exposure otherwise.
If you’re an artist interested in connecting with other artists, we’re hosting our second Choose954 Artist Potluck, taking place the last Sunday night of the month after Art Walk. It’s for artists only, to share ideas, struggles, brainstorm, and collaborate. The next one is at the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Art. We ask that you RSVP since space is limited and indicate which dish you’ll bring, as it’s a potluck.
That’s pretty much it for now! I’m going to jump in this pool here, and we hope to see you at the Art Walk. Choose954, and save the reefs!
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