page_title: Maria Martin
section_title: Career
hierarchical_section_title: Maria Martin / Career
caption_attribution_description: English: Illustration of Coluber elapsoides by Maria Martin as published in North American herpetology[1]
context_page_description: Maria Martin Bachman of Charleston, South Carolina, was an American watercolor painter and scientific illustrator. She contributed many of the background paintings for John James Audubon's The Birds of America and Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America. Bachman was the only woman of the three principal assistants that Audubon employed at the time.
context_section_description: Martin accompanied her brother-in-law, John Bachman, on several field excursions, including one trip to Niagara Falls, and learned how to make scientific descriptions and drawings of plants and animals. In the 1830s Audubon was a guest at the Bachman household during a trip to study bird species in the South. During his stay, Audubon encouraged Martin in her drawing and tutored her in natural illustration. After realizing Martin's artistic talent, Audubon supplied her with paint brushes and other art materials, and advice on how to use them to develop her talents. He spoke highly of her work in letters to John Bachman, stating in one letter "Miss Martin, with her superior talents, assists us greatly in the way of drawing; the insects she has drawn are, perhaps, the best I've seen."
  Audubon went on to ask Martin to assist with paintings for his definitive book The Birds of America. Over the course of five years, Martin assisted on volumes 2 and 4 the book. She was not paid for this work. Audubon credited Martin with nine illustrations, but it is thought that she contributed to at least 30. Martin also provided illustrations to John Edwards Holbrook for publication in his work North American Herpetology.
  Martin also assisted John Bachman in editing The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America, a collaboration between Bachman and Audubon, and later Audubon's son John Woodhouse Audubon. The importance of her contribution to Quadrupeds is discussed in a letter from John Bachman to John J. Audubon, saying Martin "knocks to the right and left with your articles and mine--lops off, corrects, criticizes, abuses and praises by turn" and "she does wonders".
  John J. Audubon named a variety of the hairy woodpecker (Picus martinae) Maria's Woodpecker, in Martin's honor.
caption: Illustration of Coluber elapsoides by Maria Martin as published in North American herpetology[5]
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