Remembering Martina Batan (1958 - 2021)

We are very sad to share this news about the passing of Martina Batan, former Co-Chair of the Dieu Donné Board of Directors and member of the Dieu Donné Advisory Board.

Martina Batan, who cut a bright swath through life with vibrant determination, intelligence, style and a pointed wit, died on March 26, after years of care and treatment for multiple strokes she suffered in 2012. She was 62.

Born Christmas day, 1958, to an Irish-American mother and a Filipino father, she grew up in Middle Village, Queens, attended St. Vincent Ferrer High School in Manhattan, then enrolled in the School of Visual Arts, where she developed lasting friendships, cultivated her passion for art and launched her career.

In 1978, she was hired at Ronald Feldman Fine Arts, where she would work for almost 35 years. She assisted in representing the artworks of gallery artists Eleanor Antin, Ida Applebroog, Joseph Beuys, Chris Burden, Komar & Melamid, Leon Golub, Bruce Pearson, Mierle Ukeles and Hannah Wilke, among many others, as well as the gallery’s print publications by Andy Warhol and William Wegman, and secondary market sales for a myriad of contemporary artists.  

Martina became an accomplished art dealer, a publisher of prints, a curator for numerous exhibitions, and an impassioned collector of both contemporary and “outsider” artworks. She supported established and emerging artists alike, acquiring works by artists ranging from Louise Bourgeois, Rico Gatson and Ana Mendieta to James Castle, Madge Gill and Roy Ferdinand.

A fervent feminist, an ardent animal lover and an enthusiastic traveler with a flawless fashion sense, she was also enamored with writing, critical thinking and progressive politics. Martina served on many boards and committees, volunteering and supporting causes in the art world and beyond, including The Women’s Art Coalition (WAC), Pets Are Wonderful Support (Paws), Hurricane Katrina relief and the arts publication, The Brooklyn Rail. She served on the boards of Dieu Donne Paper Mill and Art for Animals, and the online arts publication, Triple Canopy.

Martina lived a life compelling enough to become not only the subject of a film (David Shapiro's Missing People, 2015), but also an underground comic (David Carrino & Peter Bagge's Martini Baton!, 1994). In addition to art, she collected taxidermy animals. She worked briefly for Punk Magazine in the late 1970s; was credited as producer for movies by underground filmmaker Beth B and self-taught filmmaker Brent Green; she volunteered to clean flood-damaged houses in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina; and regularly accompanied one of her beloved French Bulldogs, a certified therapy animal, to visit patients in area hospitals. She celebrated Groundhog Day as an underappreciated holiday. 

She had the ability to cultivate creativity, respect, loyalty and great affection in those who knew her well, and touched the lives of hundreds of others.

She is survived by her sister, Christi Saporito; a brother, Timothy Batan; nephews Nicolas and Mathew Saporito, Michael Feeley and Timothy Batan Jr.; and stepfather Kevin Brennan. She was predeceased by her parents, Barbara Brennan and Federico Batan, and a brother, Jeffrey. Martina was married and divorced twice.

No funeral is planned, though a memorial will be organized. Donations may be made to the artist support organization of your choice.