Kayla Martell ARSMA

Statement

Kayla Martell is an Irish-Canadian artist, whose painterly scenes feel like memories — a last pint before a bon voyage, a retired sailor consigned to assemble model ships, or even a lost boat floating in a bathtub. With a focus on interiors, Kayla uses a cool window light to emphasise the warm tones inside, creating a dreamy atmosphere that invites the viewer to imagine themselves in the room. Kayla is an associate member of the Royal Society of Marine Artists (ARSMA), and a full member of the Society of Women Artists (SWA), and the Dublin Painting & Sketching Club.

Her loose brushwork masks a background in engineering, utilising scientific colour theory to express the full range of her palette and subject. An award-winning artist, Kayla has received numerous accolades, including the RSMA New Generation award (2023), the ROI Themed Painting Prize (2022), and The Artist Editor’s Choice award from the SWA (2022). Her work has been featured in prominent publications like the International Artist Magazine (Feb 2025) and Artists & Illustrators (2022).

Most recently, in 2025 Kayla published her first fiction novel, The Minor Fall, a fantasy romance in the west coast of Ireland.