Valerie Brennan interviews painter Donald Martiny about his work and process.

Martiny comments: "I am constantly experimenting with gestures and forms, relationships and color. I usually make small paintings first. I think of them as finished paintings but they also inform the larger works. My large paintings are a huge investment in time, effort and materials. Some of them consist of 10 to15 gallons of paint. One part of my studio is set up much like an arena. I paint on the floor walking around the work. I often make brushes out of large floor mops or brooms. The act of painting is much like a dance. While creating a large painting, I am stretched to the limits of my physicality. The act of painting records my reach at a specific time and place. I suppose one could say in this way that my paintings are self-portraits."