To bring the collaboration to life, Creative Director Emily Smith joined Martha Madigan’s daughters—themselves the subjects of many of her photographic works, and both accomplished creatives in their own right—Claire Khodara, recording artist, autism advocate and founder of talent agency STARROCK Productions, and Grace Fuller Marroquin, landscape designer and former fashion and jewelry editor, in their mother’s Philadelphia studio to explore the archives of Madigan’s prolific body of work. An exhibition of Martha Madigan’s art—including large banner-format archival prints on silk from solar photograms—will be on view at the Lafayette 148 SoHo flagship boutique at 59 Greene Street from March 13 through early April 2024.

Martha Madigan’s acclaimed art practice began in the 1970s when her experimental approach to photography and image-making saw her adopt a camera-less photographic process. Using Cyanotype coated paper, sunlight, and often botanical objects placed on the paper, Madigan created exquisitely poetic forms silhouetted by light in her iconic photograms. ‘The radiance of the sun as the essence of creation becomes a direct experience within the work,’ the artist once explained. ‘The sun reveals the truth of human nature – that work we seek dwells quietly within the core of our beings.’ Her widely exhibited works can be found in museum collections including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Art Institute of Chicago and Temple University of Philadelphia, where, over more than 40 years, she taught and served as MFA and BFA Program Director of in Photography in its prestigious Tyler School of Art.

“Our mom saw beauty in every corner, in every inch of the world. She was deeply connected to nature, and, as she would always say, nature is the greatest teacher. That’s why she worked so much with the natural world, with plants, and why she was such a pioneer in photographic arts. She made a mark, and so we feel a deep sense of devotion to continuing her legacy and spreading her love and light. To collaborate with Lafayette 148 is a beautiful expression of this.” ​

—Claire Khodara and Grace Fuller Marroquin

In this latest expression of Lafayette 148’s longstanding commitment to women artists, Emily Smith has designed an exclusive and limited-edition four-piece capsule collection featuring Martha Madigan’s “Oahu Hanging Ginger, 2010” solar photogram. By marrying Martha’s uniquely soulful approach to capturing the essence of life with Lafayette 148’s heritage of creativity and craft, the collection is a testament to the power of mother nature, and the deeply human values embedded in all artistic endeavors. 20% of sales from the Martha Madigan x Lafayette 148 Capsule Collection benefit the Martha Madigan Foundation, supporting funds for art education—a cause close to both the artist and the House.​​

SHOP THE CAPSULE

Claire Khodara and Grace Fuller Marroquin on their mother’s love, light & lasting legacy:

“Mom was magical. She was so authentic in every expression of herself, from her art to the way she dressed to the way she interacted with people, that she encouraged us to be our authentic selves from day one. There was this limitless belief in our house that we could become absolutely anything we wanted to become.”

“We would say, ‘Mom, do you want to end a series?’ And she said, ‘No, series are endless, they’re limitless, they’re ongoing.’ And it’s such a testament to her legacy that even after she’s no longer with us, her art continues.”