French sculptor, studied sculpture at the École des Beaux Arts in Lyon from 1929 to 1933 and afterwards in Paris where he met Duchamp. From 1944 to 1947 he lived with Stahly and Manessier at Mortagne, Orne, where he produced a number of large wooden sculptures. The Large Couple, a totem-like, near symmetrical work was much praised by the influential critic Michel Taipié in his famous book Un Art Autre (Paris, 1952). Etienne Martin returned to Paris in 1947 where, through Roché he met Brancusi, Dubuffet and Henri Michaux. In 1949 he produced the innovative Passementerie series of three sculptures (Paris, Pompidou), from a mixture of materials including cloth, rope and wood. These resemble liturgical costumes for some magical ritual. In the mid-1950s, he worked on the Habitation series of sculptures, which are labyrinths with phallic protrusions lining the sides, creating the sense of a protective shelter. After the 70's, the most important of his sculptures was Wall-Mirror, made from a large piece of chestnut wood cut into two, near symmetrical, halves. The work is brightly painted in some areas. This arcane sculpture symbolizes the male and female. In his later work he continued the Habitation series, as in the mixed media Mur-Verseau, which confirmed his interest in varied materials and their contrasting textures.
