Wence Martinez, Roberto Torres Mata

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provided by James Watrous Gallery

Wence Martinez, 'Ojo II,' left; and Roberto Torres Mata, 'Water Flower.'

Wence Martinez, 'Ojo II,' left; and Roberto Torres Mata, 'Water Flower.'

Paired solo exhibitions drawing on craft and cultural traditions of Mexico are featured for late summer at the Wisconsin Academy’s gallery space. Weaver Wence Martinez, a native of Mexico who has operated a studio in Door County since the 1990s, offers tapestries employing geometric patterns in “In Motion.” For “ROOTED,” Roberto Torres Mata, who earned a UW-Madison master of fine arts degree in printmaking, experiments with natural materials in creating mixed media works considering family and heritage. The artists will speak during a reception from 5:30-7:30 p.m. on Aug. 13.

media release: From July 31 through October 11, 2026, the James Watrous Gallery will feature concurrent solo exhibitions by Wence Martinez and Roberto Torres Mata showcasing hand-dyed geometric woven tapestries and handmade paper and wood objects connected to Mexican tradition, craft, and cultural identity.

Reception: Join Wence Martinez, Roberto Torres Mata, and Wisconsin Academy staff to celebrate the opening of the artists' solo exhibitions, In Motion and ROOTED at the James Watrous Gallery Thursday, August 13, 2026, from 5:30 - 7:30 pm. Artists' remarks begin at 6:00 pm. Free and open to the public. Light refreshments served.

Wence Martinez describes himself as a weaver, designer, and colorist. His life at the loom combines his Zapotec heritage with over 55 years of weaving experience to create contemporary tapestries. His solo exhibition, In Motion, features geometric designs inspired by landscapes, beadwork, and tribal patterns. He relies on the foundational training he received from his family in Teotitlán and in formal studies in Mexico City to elevate basic materials and processes into fine art. 

Martinez uses traditional floor-pedal looms and hand-spun, hand-dyed Churro wool, incorporating the Gobelins technique. He purchases Churro wool from the same spinners his family has used for generations and expresses his love of color by hand-dying it with indigo, lichen, pecan, cochineal, pericón, pomegranate, goldenrod, and aniline dyes that complement the wool’s natural range of tones.

In Roberto Torres Mata’s current work, spices, fibers, and wood are shaped, transformed, and delicately worked together to create stories rooted in family, memory, and his Mexican heritage. Using printmaking, papermaking, and woodworking in layered forms, his solo exhibition ROOTED invites you to engage with your senses to encounter tactile materials. These handmade objects reflect Torres Mata’s past, upbringing, maturity, and growth through life across different chapters.  

Influenced by culinary tradition and craft in both Mexico and the United States, this body of work explores the internal structure of family as a conceptual framework, infused with his understanding of labor, fragility, and strength. ROOTED is grounded in experimentation with materials from nature, using mixed media to convey feelings of loss and memory and the possibility for something new to transpire. The new techniques developed through this process have directed him to push beyond traditional practices and open alternative directions that inform and expand his artistic practice.

These exhibitions will be on view from July 31 through October 11, 2026.

Admission is free and the public is welcome. The James Watrous Gallery is located on the third floor of Overture Center for the Arts in downtown Madison. 

Gallery Hours: Thursday - Sunday 12:00 - 5:00pm.