Martial Westburg, Portrait of The Peary Proxy #4, Oil on Canvas Painting, 1981

A 1981 oil on canvas titled Portrait of a Peary Proxy #4 by listed New York artist Martial Westburg aka Ray Rodrique (20th century). The work, number four in a series of four, reflects Westburg’s obsession with the Arctic explorer Robert Peary, best known for reaching the geographic North Pole in 1909. The painting is a Minimalist Op Art piece, a striking composition designed with a stark black geometric form, an orb connected to an angled base, set against a rich russet background. The paint is applied in a uniform flat manner. The unframed painting is titled and signed to the canvas edge.

Martial Westburg is a New York–based artist whose work emerged in the dynamic downtown scene of the early 1980s. Known for installations that blur the line between art and everyday commerce, Westburg often draws inspiration from the culture of markets, exchange, and urban street life. His piece Ray Rodrique’s Flea Market exemplifies this approach, transforming the idea of a flea market into an art environment that invites viewers to consider the social theater of buying, selling, and collecting.

Westburg was featured in the New Museum’s 1982 fundraising event A Bizarre Bazaar, alongside figures such as Keith Haring, Colette, and Jeff Koons, where he re-created Ray Rodrique’s Flea Market as an interactive experience. His practice reflects the spirit of experimentation that defined New York’s art world at the time—playful, participatory, and unafraid to mix high and low culture.

Today, Westburg’s work is recognized for its role in expanding the possibilities of installation and conceptual art, positioning the artist as a contributor to the vibrant and rebellious energy of the 1980s downtown art movement.