Early years

Born at 127 Grande-Rue Saint-Michel in Toulouse to a French cabinet maker and a mother of Italian descent, Martin successfully persuaded his father to permit him to become an artist. He began his career in 1877 at the Toulouse School of the Fine Arts, where he was under the tutelage of Jules Garipuy; he was also a pupil of Henry-Eugène Delacroix. During his time at the School of Fine Arts, he met Marie-Charlotte Barbaroux, whom he married in 1881. In 1879, Martin relocated to Paris and with the help of a municipal scholarship, was able to study in Jean-Paul Laurens's studio. Four years later, he received his first medal at the Paris Salon, where he would hold his first exhibition three years later in 1886.

Visit to Italy and return to France

Salle de l'Assemblée générale, Conseil d'État, Paris, with paintings by Martin on the walls

The year after he won his first medal, Martin was awarded a scholarship for a tour in Italy, where he studied the work of veterans such as Giotto and Masaccio alongside Edmond Aman-Jean and Ernest Laurent. His 1889 canvas submission to the Salon earned him the gold medal for work that has been described as Pointillist. In 1896 he was made a knight of the Legion of Honour, before being promoted to the rank of officer in 1905 and commander in 1914. At the 1900 World Fair, he was awarded the Grand Prize for his work. During this period, he became friends with Auguste Rodin.

Although Martin's work as a Neo-Impressionist is not considered groundbreaking, it was rather well-received; it has been associated with world-class symbolist painter Puvis de Chavannes. After joining the Société nouvelle de peintres et de sculpteurs in Paris in 1899, he was elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts (painting section) in 1917.

Late years

Due to his introverted temperament, Martin decided to move away from Paris. After a decade of searching for an ideal home, Martin bought the Domaine de Marquayrol, overlooking the village of Labastide-du-Vert, near Cahors. He performed what is considered by some his best work in the new tranquil environment. He died there in 1943. In a 2020 portrait by Le Monde, Raphaëlle Rérolle writes about Martin painting at Labastide-du-Vert: "The elders of this Lot village say that when [the children] left class, [they] were not allowed to stop near him. Better to go straight ahead, not forgetting to greet politely, otherwise the artist would complain to the schoolmistress".^[4] Two of his four sons became painters: Claude-René Martin and Jacques Martin-Ferrières. Henri Martin was also a teacher who had among his pupils American painter Nellie Ellen Shepherd.^[5] The Musée de Cahors Henri-Martin in Cahors, which was named after him, exposes some of his work.^[6]