Glasstire Names Gabriel Martinez as Editor-in-Chief

Glasstire is pleased to announce the appointment of Houston-based writer, artist, musician, and curator Gabriel Martinez as its Editor-in-Chief. Martinez succeeds Leslie Moody Castro, who has served as Glasstire’s Guest Editor since the 2021 departure of Christina Rees. Moody Castro will stay on with publication for a few months to assist with Martinez’s transition into the role.

In his new, full-time role, Martinez will oversee all of Glasstire’s feature articles and news content and also contribute writing — including reviews, essays, op-eds, and interviews — to the publication. He will work closely with the publication’s writers and staff to develop ideas and stories, and will see their work through various stages of editing. He will additionally help select Glasstire’s weekly Top Five, and will also co-host Glasstire’s biweekly Art Dirt podcast. 

Brandon Zech, Glasstire’s Publisher, says of Martinez’s appointment: “I’m ecstatic to have Gabriel bring his many years of experience in Texas’ art scene to Glasstire. Gabriel has always been a wonderfully intelligent, thoughtful person who has contributed so much to the various communities he’s involved in. I’m excited he will be helming our publication, and I’m sure both our readers and our writers will find that he has a sharp mind and a deep understanding of and love for art.” 

Of his new role, Martinez told Glasstire: “I am honored to work with a talented staff of thinkers and writers, and look forward to learning more about the high caliber of creative talent across the state.”

Martinez holds an MFA from Columbia University in New York City, where he served as the arts editor at the Columbia Journal, and a BFA from the Corcoran College of Art and Design in Washington, D. C. From 2009-2010 he participated in the Whitney Museum of American Art’s Independent Study Program. Then, after finishing that program, he moved to Houston for the Core Residency Program at the Glassell School of Art, where he was an artist-in-residence for two years.

Since relocating to Texas, Martinez has been an important part of the regional art scene. He has exhibited at Discovery Green, DiverseWorks, the Houston Museum of African American Culture, the Rice Media Center, Sicardi Gallery, The Station Museum, the Blaffer Art Museum, and Anya Tish Gallery in Houston; Artpace and Centro de Artes in San Antonio; and The MAC in Dallas. In 2011, during his time in the Core Program, he was also a resident artist at Project Row Houses. 

In 2012, in Houston’s Third Ward, Martinez founded Alabama Song, a community space that fosters cultural exchange across disciplines. Bringing together artists, writers, musicians, and curators, the space supports the development of experimental works by student, emerging, and established performers and artists. During his time in Houston, Martinez has additionally taught classes at the University of Houston and Rice University.

Martinez has received a number of awards and recognitions for his work and Alabama Song, including a Robert Rauschenberg Foundation SEED Grant in 2016, a Joan Mitchell Foundation Painters & Sculptors Grant in 2019, an individual grant from the Houston Arts Alliance in 2020, and grants in 2022 from both the BIPOC Arts Network & Fund in Houston and the MacDowell Fellowship in Peterborough, New Hampshire.

Beyond his artistic and curatorial accomplishments, Martinez is also a seasoned writer. Last year, he reviewed the exhibition Moe Penders: Cuir at Art League Houston for Glasstire. In 2022, he contributed to Pete Gershon’s book Impractical Spaces: Houston, authoring a section on Alabama Song. He has also authored the book A Student’s Guide to Stealing (2014), published by BookMachine/Onestar Press, and contributed to Damascus: Tourists, Artists, Secret Agents A Collective Narrative (2009), and Two Front Doors (2023), a new publication documenting the history of Houston’s Blaffer Art Museum.

Martinez officially began his new role at Glasstire on January 1, 2024. He may be reached at [email protected]. 

About Glasstire
Glasstire is an online publication that covers visual art in Texas. Its mission is to expand the conversation about art in the state. It has been in continuous operation since January 2001. It is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) publication, supported in part by grants from The Houston Endowment, The Brown Foundation, Inc., the National Endowment for the Arts, the Greater Houston Community Foundation, the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance, and the Texas Commission for the Arts. Glasstire’s name is an homage to Robert Rauschenberg’s sculptures of tires cast in glass. The artworks evoke traveling great distances, at great speed, with great clarity.

Glasstire is the oldest web-only art magazine in the country.