Catalog de Lumière

Light as a Living Material

I didn’t come to making light sculptures through design school or by deciding to become a “lighting artist.” This work grew out of the same life that shaped my music — working with my hands, listening closely to materials, and following curiosity wherever it led.

For most of my life I’ve been a percussionist and composer. I think in terms of touch, resonance, rhythm, phrasing, and space. When I began building objects in my studio — first instruments, then furniture, then small constructions that had no clear category — I realized I was still composing, but with form and material instead of time.

Light entered naturally. I wanted the objects I was making to do more than sit quietly in a room. I wanted them to emit something — to create presence. Light became that inner voice.

The materials I use are often reclaimed: longleaf pine, structural beams, fragments with history embedded in them. These materials carry time. I work slowly and by hand, allowing the form to emerge through listening rather than forcing a fixed design. Light behaves the same way. You don’t control it — you shape the conditions for it to appear.

These sculptures are small architectures. They hold space. They create a field rather than dominate a room. In a world of constant brightness and speed, I’m interested in a different kind of illumination — something warmer, quieter, and alive. (read the full backstory here)

—

Press

”Billy Martin Makes the Lamps That Shine” in JazzTimes

—

Explore the collection

Click on any photo below to learn more about each piece