The themes of my work draw from my lifelong interest in the human’s response – both psychological and physical – to what has happened or is about to happen. My ongoing attempt to capture this in my etchings and drawings is what I call Humanography, a series of explorations of the mood and state of mind. My intention with Humanography is not to portray people but rather to deploy them as essential props in a refocus on the imaginary or everyday personas; the given or chosen roles. I usually recruit either people from my close environment willing to interpret the story, or myself, to create characters that I storyboard, stage and depict. Literature, cinema and the performing arts are my perpetual inspiration. My characters are sometimes presented as artists themselves, highlighting presence or absence in a human-created environment. My ultimate objective is to capture what I consider essential: the expression that draws attention to the human condition, and the inner rhythm that holds together the chaotic elements that make up the human.
My prints are my drawings. I create my drawings on transparent media with charcoal, pencil, or marker. Sometimes I combine my drawing with digital collage. When the artwork is completed to its finest detail, I etch it onto solar plate employing this more recent (1970’s) non-toxic printmaking technique that uses sunlight and water instead of acid and ground. With this approach, the artwork is etched onto a polymer plate, transporting the lights and darks to the plate as sunlight passes through the drawing. A gentle wash in tap water completes the process. Like this, I create small editions of etchings, pulling each print by hand from the inked plate as with other intaglio processes such as drypoint, another technique I sometimes use. In my prints I’m trying to preserve traditional drawing qualities: the fine flowing pencil line, the tense nature or velvety gradation of charcoal, and the liquid properties of watercolor media. My editions are usually varied, allowing further exploration of the subject, and for the same reason they often evolve into series.
Matina Marki Tillman is a born and raised Greek, currently living in Connecticut. Her culture combined with her university background in Greek Medieval and Modern Literature and Poetry (B.A., University of Ioannina) has been a constant source of inspiration for her lifelong interest in drawing the human. After moving to the United States, she had the opportunity to broaden her exposure to visual arts through college fine art classes, independent studies, and workshops including figure drawing, computer animation, and illustration. These ultimately guided her to printmaking, where her drawing background plays a strong role in the creation of the print matrix.
Matina’s work, including the solo exhibitions Humanography and Humanography: Shifts and Variations at the Washington Printmakers Gallery, has been reviewed in The Washington Post and recommended in She Writes Press. Her prints have been recognized with several honors and awards throughout her career, including the most prints represented at the University of Wisconsin Parkside National Small Print Exhibition, Hudson Valley Art Association Awards for excellence in graphics, and the first place prize at the National Association of Women Artists National Small Works Exhibition. Her work has been shown in multiple venues, including the National Arts Club in New York City, the Museum of Printing History in Houston, and Gallery Walk at Reagan National Airport. Matina has been elected to the Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts, the Hudson Valley Art Association, and the National Association of Women Artists. She has been a member of the Washington Printmakers Gallery in Washington DC since 2010
2019
Honorable Mention, Transformations: Figures of our Other Selves
Mills Pond Gallery, Saint James, New York
2017
First Place Prize National Association of Women Artists (NAWA) National Small Works Exhibition
NAWA Gallery, New York, NY
2016
Al Camurati Memorial Award for Excellence in Graphics
Hudson Valley Art Association 83rd Annual Exhibition, Salmagundi Club Gallery, New York, NY
2014
Perry Alley Memorial Award for Excellence in Graphics
Hudson Valley Art Association 82nd Annual Exhibition, Salmagundi Club Gallery, New York, NY
2007
Most prints represented
University of Wisconsin Parkside 20th National Small Print Exhibition, Kenosha, WI
Honorable Mention,
Manchester Community College 2007 State of Connecticut Art Competition and Exhibition, Manchester, CT
2007
Richard Harden Figure Drawing Workshops, Collinsville, CT
2002-2007
Visual Fine Arts course work and independent studies, Manchester Community College, Manchester, CT
1998-2001
Graphic Design (Computer Graphics) & Visual Fine Arts course work and independent studies, Manchester Community College, Manchester, CT
1989
University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece BA (MA, World Education Services US equivalent), Greek Medieval and Modern Literature and Poetry
Maureen Doallas "All Art Friday" Writing Without Paper, She Writes Press, July 19, 2013
Mark Jenkins "In the Galleries," Washington Post, December 18, 2015
Mark Jenkins, "In the Galleries" Washington Post, November 15, 2019
Mark Jenkins "In the Galleries" Washington Post, October 9, 2020
Swindell, Caitlin "Uncovering the Human Condition with Matina Marki Tillman", InLiquid Magazine, November 21, 2021
2017-present
National Association of Women Artists, New York, NY
2016-present
Hudson Valley Art Association, New York
2010-present
Washington Printmakers Gallery, Washington, DC
2009-present
Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts, Mystic, CT
2019
Humanography: Shifts and Variations
Washington Printmakers Gallery, Washington, DC
2015
Humanography
Washington Printmakers Gallery, Washington, DC
2023
International Original Print Exhibition, Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers, London, England
Variations, Washington Printmakers Gallery, Washington, DC
2020
ReEntry
Washington Printmakers Gallery, Washington, DC
2019
37th Bradley International Print and Drawing Exhibition, Bradley University Gallery, Peoria, IL
2018
The Art of the Story: Expanding the Narrative, Grand Central Public Library, New York, NY
2017
36th Bradley International Print and Drawing Exhibition, Bradley University Gallery, Peoria, IL
Atlanta Print Biennial, Kai Lin Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia
Black and White, Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition, Brooklyn, NY
National Association of Women Artists Winter Small Works, NAWA Gallery, New York, NY
2016
Hudson Valley Art Association 83rd Annual Exhibition, Salmagundi Club Gallery, New York, NY
2015
Face it: The Face in Contemporary Art, Site Brooklyn Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2014
40 ̊42’ N / 37 ̊48’ S: Joint Exhibition of Intaglio Prints by New York & Melbourne Based Artists
National Arts Club, New York, NY
Hudson Valley Art Association 82nd Annual Exhibition, Salmagundi Club Gallery, New York, NY
Figuratively Speaking, Customs House Museum, Clarksville, TN
2013
PrintMatters, Museum of Printing History, Houston, TX
New York Society of Etchers 3rd National Exhibition of Intaglio Prints National Arts Club, National Arts Club New York, NY
Distant Voices
Washington Printmakers Gallery, Washington, DC
2012
Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts 101st Annual Exhibition, Mystic Art Association, Mystic, CT
Academy Center of the Arts National Exhibition, Lynchburg, VA
Pushing Process
Gallery Walk, Reagan National Airport, Washington, DC
2011
New York Society of Etchers 1st National Exhibition of Intaglio Prints, National Arts Club, New York, NY
Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts 100th Annual Exhibition, Mystic Art Association, Mystic, CT
New York Society of Etchers Directors Exhibition, National Arts Club, New York, NY
2010
New Faces, New Prints, Washington Printmakers Gallery,Washington, DC
2009
University of Wisconsin Parkside 22nd National Small Print Exhibition, Kenosha, WI
2008
Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts 97th Annual Exhibition, Mystic Art Association, Mystic, CT
2007
University of Wisconsin Parkside 20th National Small Print Exhibition, Kenosha, WI
Center for Contemporary Printmaking 6th Biennial International Miniature Print Exhibition, Norwalk, CT
