Adam Martinakis was born in 1972 in Lubań, Poland, to a Polish mother and a Greek father. In 1982 his family moved to Athens, where he studied Interior Architecture, Decorative Arts and Industrial Design. That background in design gave him a sharp eye for structure and light, but he was always drawn to something more expressive.
Since the year 2000, he has been working with computer-generated visual media like 3D rendering, animation, and digital sculpture. He taught digital arts and design at many institutes along the way. Today he’s recognised as one of the most notable digital sculptors in the international contemporary art scene.
His work is all about the human condition and consciousness. He uses the human form as an archetype, not a portrait. His figures float, fragment, merge, and dissolve in impossible space. They are dynamic mannequins suspended in a void, and the story they tell is what matters most to him.
“Imagining art being a bridge, a connection between the spirit and the material, the living and the absent, the personal and the universal.”
That quote, from his artist statement, sums up his whole vision. Technology is not the subject for him. It’s the medium that lets invisible states take form. Freed from gravity and linear time, his digital space becomes a metaphysical place where the physical and immaterial can meet.
His style has evolved over the years from digital surrealism toward what he calls digital metaphysical symbolism. He combines sculptural form with symbolic narrative and emotionally charged space. Light is not just an aesthetic element for him. It’s a symbolic force that reveals presence.
Q: What software does Adam Martinakis use?
A: He creates his 3D models using 3ds Max and then renders them. He also uses VRay and Photoshop in his workflow. The process is technical, but the result is pure emotion.
His work has been shown internationally in museums and festivals, including the Erarta Museum in Saint Petersburg, FILE Festival in São Paulo, and the Athens Digital Arts Festival. In 2015, he created the cover artwork for The New York Times Magazine. He also gave a TEDx talk in 2019 about the relationship between artist intention and viewer interpretation.
Q: Where does Adam Martinakis live now?
A: He is based on the island of Crete in Greece and works across digital sculpture, moving image, and photography. He also maintains connections in Poland and the UK. His central concern remains the same: to use the human body as a bridge between matter and consciousness.