Gina Martynova
Surreal, bold and theatrical, Gina Martynova's artwork fuses technical craftsmanship with a whimsical and eerie dream-like world. Exploring female representation within folklore, fashion and nature the artwork provokes simultaneously dark and inviting imagery. The tension between the opulent detail and vast negative space, essential to her aesthetic, is borrowed from Taoism and an insight into Gina's Russian-Chinese heritage and upbringing as a third culture kid growing up in Asia.
A LITTLE BIT MORE...
New York-based artist Gina Martynova communicates in the name of her alter ego Starry, short for “Starry Eyed Gypsy”. This illustrated character, a “vagabond alien botanist” who travels the universe exploring nature and specimens of life, is the personification of Gina’s own imagination and a culture she’s cultivated by growing up around the world. Born to a Russian father and Russian-Chinese mother in Moscow, Gina moved to Bangkok, Thailand at age 2 for her father’s UN interpreter’s post. As a young adult, she flitted between New York, London and beyond, fusing her experiences of different cultures into her own haunting and whimsical “Starry style” and Starry Collective.
Currently the designer at Ozone Design, Inc Gina Martynova works on specialty projects with clients such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, SFMOMA, BAM, SAKS Fifth Ave and Tori Richard. When she’s isn’t busy working as head designer of the accessory design label or exhibiting her own creations in galleries around the states, Gina’s bringing her Starry-eyed creations into the world of fashion design. “When I see people wearing my clothing and accessorizing with my art pieces, it’s almost like they understand my soul and my outlook in life,” she says of her creations on textile, “it’s a great representation of my culture that people can appreciate, through wearing my art.” Currently working on the Resort 2015 mini capsule Gina Martynova plans to integrate the visual art and fashion into a seamless 'Starry' experience come the fall.
AWARDS
Certificate of Merit, Society of Illustrators 2007