Hello, my name is Marty Bolte. I was born in May of 1948 and I live in a suburb of Dallas, Texas. I work as an accounting technician at a company that builds door units for new apartment construction. A long time ago I graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and the equivalent of a double major in Graphic Design.

For as long as I can remember I have enjoyed making things. I’ve experimented with painting, sewing, drawing, cooking, cartooning, furniture making, screen printing, and airbrush illustration. Some 3D work did find its way into the mix: assemblages, pottery, and dough sculpture to name a few. Despite that, my work was primarily two dimensional. I found I was working hard to make the flat surface appear three dimensional. Eventually it occurred to me that I should try making the objects of my imagination instead of drawing them.

I made a conscious effort to explore 3D. I tried wire sculpture, sculpey, plasticine, wood assemblages, wood carving, cast concrete, papier mache and finally welded steel. As I worked with steel I learned how flexible it can be as a sculptural medium. Furthermore, I found the processes and tools a pleasure to work with. Sparks flying from the abrasive cutters and grinders, red hot steel bending as easily as a licorice stick and manipulating a puddle of molten steel to fasten two pieces together is all very exciting. And when it all cools down, you have a strong new thing.

While learning to use the equipment, I built a few simple pieces that resembled primitive African fetish figures. Undoubtedly this choice of imagery was due to my recent discovery of a book: African Vodun by Suzanne Preston Blier.

The photographs in her book and others were of visually powerful figures, all different, but with similar elements. The in depth descriptions of the meanings of those elements fascinated me because I could see them translated into steel abstractions of the originals.

My goal is to achieve a level of visual power which the viewer can sense without having to understand the meaning of the elements. Since my first pieces I have learned more about the fetish sculptures and more about how to use my torch. As a result my work has become more detailed and intricate. I continue to learn and I find new ideas for sculptures everywhere from dreams to tar stains on pavement.

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