# Fletcher Martin artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/fletcher-martin/
Profile generated: 2026-05-18T21:27:00.000Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1904-04-29
- Nationality: American
- Movements: American Scene painting
- Common media: oil painting, watercolor, fresco, illustration, graphic art, drawing

## About Fletcher Martin

Fletcher Martin (1904–1979) was an American painter, illustrator, muralist, and educator whose career spanned more than four decades. Born on April 29, 1904, Martin became best known for two recurring subjects: gritty, sometimes unflinching depictions of boxing and other athletic contests, and vivid scenes of military life drawn from his experience as a World War II correspondent. He worked across oil, watercolor, fresco, drawing, and print media, reflecting a broad technical range rooted in American Scene traditions. Martin held significant academic posts, including an artist-in-residence position at the University of Iowa in 1940 and leadership of the painting department at the Kansas City Art Institute from 1941 to 1945, where he succeeded the regionalist painter Thomas Hart Benton. His work is represented in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York, confirming his place within the twentieth-century American art canon.

## Common works and media

Martin produced oil paintings, watercolors, fresco murals, drawings, graphic prints, and magazine illustrations over his career. His boxing and sports scenes are among his most frequently encountered subjects at auction. Military and war-themed compositions from his World War II correspondence also appear on the market. Additional works include figurative scenes, landscapes, and genre paintings in the American Scene tradition.

## Market and appraisal context

Fletcher Martin's work appears at auction primarily as paintings, works on paper, prints, and illustrations. His boxing and sports-themed compositions are among his most widely recognized images and tend to attract the strongest collector interest. Institutional representation at MoMA and other public collections lends additional credibility and long-term collectibility to his market. Collectors and appraisers should consider medium, subject matter, provenance, condition, and exhibition history when evaluating any Martin work. Authentication may benefit from consultation with catalogue raisonné records or specialist review, given the breadth of his output across multiple mediums.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine verified artist identity research from museum, library authority, and institutional sources with auction records, auction-house context, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. For Fletcher Martin, identity data is grounded in Getty ULAN, VIAF, Wikidata, the RKD, and the Museum of Modern Art.

## Sources

- RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/88137
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5458802
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/96599147/
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500124303
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/3790
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fletcher_Martin
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no94033486