Gustavo Martinez was born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from San Jose State University with a minor in Mexican American Studies. He achieved a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Washington in 2011 and was awarded the Parnassus Teaching with Excellence award. Martinez is passionate about connecting with communities through ceramics and indigenous traditions. He honors Nature and his cultural heritage through indigenous ceremonies and is a member of Kalpulli Tlalteca, People of the Earth Community in El Paso, Texas. Working as a production consultant at a ceramic water filter factory in Guatemala, reminded Gustavo of the importance of caring for water. Martinez traveled to the Usambara Mountains of Tanzania with La Paz International Foundation to build a ceramic kiln in a woman’s pottery village. That same year he experienced the amazing journey of summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro. These experiences have heavily influenced Gustavo’s sculptures and world outlook. Martinez has taught ceramics at higher education institutions in the greater Seattle area, El Paso Museum of Art, and has been part of the summer faculty at the Sitka Fine Arts Camp in Sitka, Alaska where he has taught ceramics to middle and high school students. Gustavo Martinez currently resides between San Jose, California, El Paso, Texas, and Tacoma, Washington.