TRIADA SAMARAS
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Artist Statement 

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I am an interdisciplinary artist of Greek ancestry whose artwork investigates personal and global issues: identity, body, voice, house/home, geography. In the past, my art practice has included: public art, socially-engaged art, poetry, and studio art.  I have worked in: painting, drawings, pastels, photography, and poetry.  Recently I have turned almost exclusively to painting in oil and acrylic both in my studio and "en plein air" (outdoors).  This work has been inspired by my on-going experiences with Long Covid, a chronic condition that is not yet well understood.  With Long Covid I have experienced months of going inward and much time spent alone. These circumstances have evolved my painting practice a great deal in a positive direction.

Currently, I am engaged in creating two separate, synchronous series of paintings. In the first series (Plein Air Paintings), I celebrate the freedom of the body outdoors, immersed in sound and light.  The site of this work is Pine Point Beach, Maine where I have summered since I was very young. When I work outdoors to create a "en plein air" painting I can put all thinking aside in order to immerse myself in a visceral experience that directs my use of the paint in what what seems to be a non-restricted
and boundless environment.  This experience of transcending my body and the geography is exhilarating and the act of painting feels freeing
and instinctual outdoors.  In these works I often use acrylics on a wood panel and/or canvas as the paints dry quickly and I can glaze often while painting.  
I work from a palette full of gorgeous blues greens yellows and pinks with paintbrushes or my fingers.  Earth tones tones are also vital to my paintings.  I feel a natural kinship with the colors and textures and sounds outdoors and I aim to re-create this same excitement in my paintings. I carefully consider each composition before painting by creating various sketches or photographs to consider various aspects of the final painting.  Then I paint. Together the sky, the grass, the water and the land all seem to envelop me as I work, and I aim, as an artist to transmit these feelings.  In. this process I experience a deep connection with nature and my painting process that is profoundly healing. Two painters who inspire me immensely are Winslow Homer, who painted in Maine close to Pine Point, and J.M.W. Turner.

In the second series of paintings, (Disconnected Body Parts Paintings) I use body parts (often my own) in disconnected ways, a somber palette and techniques borrowed from the Old Masters to express a different reality.  Again, my body plays a major role in moving the paint and I have come to appreciate the significance of my human body as I create,  particularly with the physical limitations imposed on myself by Long Covid.  The body parts appear in my paintings gradually and form a composition that I do not plan for in advance..  I add them as I paint, often shifting things as I proceed and integrating them with abstract backgrounds.  Hands and arms have emerged frequently as have legs. In these paintings the extremities of my human body become more anonymous and universal.  I keep the colors muted in this series of paintings and rely on Old Masters painting techniques with many glazes.  I prefer to use oil paints on canvas for these works.  The moodiness that I can achieve with a limited palette and glazing with oil paint techniques helps me to express my emotions subtly. Two painters who inspire me greatly for this series are Rembrandt and Goya.

Generally speaking, my artwork is often auto-biographical whether it appears that way or not.  Using artistic means I explore my feelings about my inner and outer experiences. My artistic process involves connecting inward to my deepest self and outward to the world around me.  I also aim for my works to have in them a sense of "time". My aim is always to create a type of artwork that can speak to people from all walks of life.

Through art I can make the invisible visible and I can actualize my experiences anew and beyond and anew.  I am not interested in the re-creation of my human experience per se. Rather I wish to use this powerful emotional energy as a catalyst that drives my creative process forward in the direction of something new. I aim as an artist to release inner emotional and psychological forces to a greater realm, one that is imaginary and mysterious and even more powerful and one that can be communicated to others.

During my lifetime, I have been influenced by numerous creatives, too many to name here. But my biggest influences have been composer,  Mikis Theodorakis, writer, Nikos Kazantzakis, poet, Kavafy, painter, El Greco, painters, German and Northern Expressionists including Munch and Van Gogh, painters, Neo-Expressionist, Byzantine Icons, painter, Goya, artist, Glenn Ligon, poet, Sappho, poet, Maya Angelou, write, James Baldwin, poet Sylvia Plath, poet Rick Benjamin, and numerous other feminist, humanist, and activist artists.     ​

Triada Samaras, 2022



 

Artist Bio

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​ For over 25 years, Greek-American artist, Triada Samaras, has been exploring the themes of identity, house/home, voice, geography and democracy in her artwork and poems, often in art activist and socially engaged contexts in New York City and Athens, Greece.

Her work has won her national and international recognition.  Samaras is also a studio artist working in Brooklyn, New York and Maine, where she creates personal, intuitive, passionate and often visceral interpretations of these themes in paintings, drawings, sculpture and poetry.  
Since 2021, Samaras has turned her attention exclusively to painting in oil and acrylic on canvas and on wood panels both in her studio and "en plein air" (outdoors).

Originally educated in Fine Art at Smith College, Northampton, MA and the Museum School of Fine Arts in Boston, MA, Samaras has also completed graduate work in art, art education, and interdisciplinary art at Columbia University, New York and Goddard College, Vermont.  She is currently an Adjunct Professor of Drawing and Fine Art at Kean University and Art and Art Education at William Paterson University.

Her recent exhibitions include a solo exhibition: Triada Samaras: Unbound at the Paterson Museum, 2019, curated by Giacomo DeStephano;  and several group exhibitions including:  Disconnected Anatomies at The Riverfront Gallery, 2022, curated by Haifa Bint-Kadi;  Figuration at Atelier Rosal, 2022 curated by Heidi and Nick Rosal;  Glimpse, at Gallery Afero Gallery 2020, curated by Candace Nicholson and Jo-El Lopez;  and Greek Women: Then and Now, at Howe Gallery, Kean University 2019-2020 curated by Jacquelyn Tuerk-Stonberg. Her Unbound  solo exhibition at Paterson Museum was featured at Tussle Magazine in a piece written by art critic Jonathan Goodman.  Curator, Mary Birminham, has also written about her work for an upcoming catalog LINK.



 

Artist CV

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Triada Samaras born in Haverhill, Massachusetts. Live/Work Brooklyn, New York. Email:  triadasamaras@gmail.com

EDUCATION

2012.  Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Interdisciplinary Art, Goddard College, Plainfield, VT           
           Thesis: At Home in Activist Art: Transgressing Political & Geographical Boundaries
2006.  Master of Art in Art and Art Education, Teachers College/Columbia University, New York, NY;
           MA Thesis: Awesome Art as Adolescent Educator
1985   Fifth Year Certificate and Award. Museum School of Fine Arts, Boston, MA              
           Medici Society Traveling Fellowship Award with Boston Museum of Fine Arts Exhibition
1984   Diploma in Studio Art, Museum School of Fine Arts, Boston, MA, Dana Pond Award in Painting
1980   Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Studio Art, Smith College, Northampton, MA

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2019   Triada Samaras: Unbound: Paintings, Works on Paper, Sculpture. Paterson Museum, Paterson, NJ. cur. Giacomo DeStephano
2015   The State of Greece 2012: Enoikiazetai/Poleitai: For Rent/For Sale: Greece Photographs. 
           
Nancy Dryfoos Gallery, Kean University, Union, NY. cur. Neil  Tetkowski
2009   Triada Samaras, House/Home: Paintings: Sculpture. Art Activism. Nancy Dryfoos Gallery, Kean University, Union, NJ. cur. Neil
           Tetkowski

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS (full list available upon request)

​2023. Women in Art. Las Laguna Art Gallery. Laguna Beach, CA, cur. Lori McBride
2022  Fall 2022 Members Showcase. 
Pro Arts Jersey City.
2022  Disconnected Anatomies. The Riverfront Gallery. Yonkers, NY. cur. Haifa-Bint-Kadi
2022  Figuration. Atelier Rosal. Rahway, NJ. cur. Heidi & Nick Rosal
2022  Summer 2022 Member Showcase.. 
Pro Arts Jersey City.
2022  Faculty Show. Howe Gallery. Kean University Art Department, Union, NJ. cur Anna Shukeylo
2021   Greek Women: Then and Now. Howe Gallery. Kean University. Union, NJ. cur. Jacquelyn Tuerk-Stonberg
2020   Glimpse. Gallery Afero. Newark, NJ. cur. Candace Nicholson and Jo-El Lopez  
2020  Word. Atelier Rosal. Rahway, NJ. cur. Heidi & Nick Rosal  
2019    Ghost Towns, Or, the Memories that Haunt Us, Nancy Dryfoos Gallery, Kean University, Union, NJ. cur. Joanna M. Wezyk
2019    Kean University Faculty Show at Long Beach Island Foundation of the Arts, Long Beach Island, NJ. cur. Daniella Kerner
2018    FL3TCH3R Exhibit: Social and Politically Engaged Art, Reece Museum, East Tennessee State University, TN  cur. David Carson
2018    Genesis, Artist Stories of Immigration. Dab Art, Ventura, CA. cur. Yessica Torres
2018    Faculty Show. James Howe Gallery, Kean University Art Department, Union, NJ
2018    Small Works Show. Atelier Rosal, NJ. Rahway, NJ. cur. Heidi & Nick Rosal  
2018    100 Works on Paper Benefit, Kentler International Drawing Space, Brooklyn, NY cur. Florence Neil
2017    Dedicated to Nikos Kazantzakis., Meropion Foundation, Athens, Greece. Sponsored by UNESCO of Piraeus & Islands.
2017    The Enduring Spirit, Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre, Summit, NJ. cur. Laura Ekstrand 
2016    100 Works on Paper Benefit, Kentler International Drawing Gallery, Brooklyn, NY. cur. Florence Neil
2014    Fall Salon, James Howe Gallery, Kean University, Union, NJ. cur. Julie Harris
2014    Wish You Were Here 13,  A.I.R. Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2014    100 Works on Paper Benefit, Kentler International Drawing Gallery, Brooklyn, NY. cur. Florence Neil
2012    Nature and Humanity, Vital Space, Athens, Greece. cur. by Danae Stratou and Yanis Varoufakis
2012    100 Works on Paper Benefit, Kentler International Drawing Gallery, Brooklyn, NY. cur. by Florence Neil
2012    Brooklyn Utopias Exhibition, Old Stone House, Brooklyn, NY. cur. Katherine Gressel and Kim Maier
2011     Summer Art Crawl, Goddard College MFA Program,  Plainfield, VT 
2011     Winter Art Crawl, Goddard College MFA Program, Plainfield, VT
2010    Scarring Our Water, Governors Island Utopia, Governors Island, NY. cur. Katherine Gressel
2010    Producing, Macy Gallery, Columbia University, New York, NY cur. Maurizio Pellegrin
2010    Studio Practices Macy Gallery, Columbia University, New York, NY, curator: Maurizio Pellegrin.
2010    Gisca Palooza, GISCA/Global Initiative for Social Change Through the Arts:, Millbank Chapel, Columbia University
            New York, NY 
2010    100 Works on Paper Benefit, Kentler International Drawing Space, Brooklyn, NY. cur. Florence Neil
2009    Brooklyn Utopias?, Brooklyn Historical Society, Brooklyn, NY  cur. Katherine Gressel
2009    Brooklyn Utopias?, Old Stone House, Brooklyn, New York  cur. Katherine Gressel and Kim Maier
2009    Faculty Exhibition, James Howe Gallery,  Kean University Art Department, Union, NJ  
2009    100 Works on Paper Benefit, Kentler International Drawing Space, Brooklyn, NY cur. Florence Neil
2006    Drawing Show, Macy Gallery, Teachers College/Columbia University, New York, NY, cur.  Maurizio Pellegrin
2006    Faculty Exhibition, James Howe Gallery, Kean University Art Department, Union, NJ

Public Art
2012   Public Art Workshop: Free Public Place. Old Stone House, Brooklyn, NY
2009.  Public Art Installation: Democracy Wall (2007-2009). Carroll Gardens/Gowanus, Brooklyn, NY
2006   Public Art Installation: Poem for a Garbage Can. Carroll Park, Carroll Gardens/Gowanus, Brooklyn, NY

SELECTED POEMS AND ESSAYS

2008    Ode to a Developer, Gowanus Lounge, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Bob Guskind
2008    Carpe Diem. Gowanus Lounge, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Bob Guskind
2008    Howl/The Condo Building, Gowanus Lounge, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Bob Guskind
2008    Ode to the BSA/Board of Standards and Appeals. Gowanus Lounge, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Bob Guskind
2008    Public Place. The Intended Use is… (poem), Gowanus Lounge, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Bob Guskind  
2007    The Professor in White. The inter-view Bulletin, Columbia University, New York, NY ed. Maria Hodek
2007    Poem for the Sick and Suffering. The inter-view Bulletin, Columbia University, New York, NY ed. Maria Hodek
2007    Poem for a Garbage Can (poem), The inter-view Bulletin, Columbia University, New York, NY. ed. Maria Hodek
2006    Poem for a Garbage Can (poem), ERATO/The Park Slope Poetry Project, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Daryl Lang
2006    America is Oil Addicted/Bad Mood (poem), ERATO/The Park Slope Poetry Project, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Daryl Lang
2006    Dirtbike to God (poem), ERATO/The Park Slope Poetry Project. Brooklyn, NY. ed. Daryl Lang
2006    Poem for a Garbage Can (poem), ERATO/The Park Slope Poetry Project, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Daryl Lang
2005    It’s Hard to Write a… (poem), ERATO/The Park Slope Poetry Project, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Daryl Lang
2005    Mom is Dancing Now (poem), ERATO/The Park Slope Poetry Project, Brooklyn, NY. ed. Daryl Lang
2003    Journeys, IN-Step Issue #2 Art and Art Education Newsletter, Art and Art Education
            Department, Teachers College/Columbia University, New York, NY. ed.  Judith Burton
2002    YiaYia’s Pots (poem), Hellenic Voice, Vol. 2 #52, Boston, MA
2002    The Spectator (For the Victims of 9/11) (poem), Hellenic Voice, Vol. 2 #38, Boston, MA
2002    The Spectator (For the Victims of 9/11) (poem), The Haverhill Gazette, Haverhill, MA 
2002    Manic Depression,  April Poetisms, New York, NY

SELECTED INTERVIEWS

2007    Samaras & Shifreen (conversation between a poet and a painter: Triada Samaras and Frank Shifreen), The inter-view
             Bulletin, Teachers College/Columbia University, New York, NY
2007    “Inter-view” Bulletin: Teacher Writers for a Public Voice (TWPV),
              <http://www.subjectmatters.org/newsletter/vol02_issue_03_cstc_november_2007.pdf>
2006    Editor’s Discretion: Featuring Triada Samaras, Volume 1, Issue 2, The inter-view Bulletin, Columbia University, Teachers
             College/Columbia University, New York, NY

SELECTED COLLECTIONS 

Carroll Park, Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn Historical Society, Brooklyn, New York
Long Island University, Brooklyn, New York
Columbia University, New York, NY
Private Collections in USA, Greece and Switzerland

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

2022  Pro Jersey City Book: Statements: The artwork of the members of Pro Arts Jersey City and their statements in a single sentence. https://www.proartsjerseycity.org
2019  Tussle Magazine: Triada Samaras at the Paterson Museum Jonathan Goodman https://www.tusslemagazine.com/triada-samaras
​2019   Aktina FM Greek-American Radio. Triada Samaras at the Paterson Museum. Interview w. Marlena Marletti

2019   The Sandpaper Wednesday May 22, 2019. Kean Faculty Join Creative Forces at LBIF
2019   Mary Birmingham. Triada Samaras: Unbound at the Paterson Museum  https://triadasamarasartist.blogspot.com
2018   Dab Art Quarterly Exhibition & Publication “Genesis” January 1 - March 31, 2019
https://www.dabart.me/genesis-press-release

2019   Nikos Katanzakis Thought Leadership. Booklet Ioannis Zaglaris, author. Triada Samaras, Editor. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikos_Kazantzakis
2018   Apero Gallery Catalogue.  Catalogue Curator:  E. E. Jacks. "Unbound"  January 2018 http://www.showapero.com/uploads/8/5/3/4/85349892/apÉro_catalogue_-_unbound_-_january_2018_web_single.pdf
2018   Apero Gallery Catalogue.  Catalogue Curator:  E. E. Jacks. "Reflection"  November 2017 http://www.showapero.com/uploads/8/5/3/4/85349892/2017-11_reflection_aperocatalogue_single_1.pdf
2017   The Center for Artistic Activism. New York, New York  “Actipedia: The Democracy Wall Ten Years Later.” https://actipedia.org/project/democracy-wall-carroll-gardens
2017   Art at the Limits: City Gallery of New York.  “From NY to NJ and Back” (6 images). City Limits, In-depth Reporting on New York City.  https://citylimits.org/2018/04/25/citygalleryart-of-new-york/
2017   Art at the Limits: City Gallery of New York. “Ten Year Anniversary of the Democracy Wall.”   City Limits, In-depth Reporting on New York City.  https://citylimits.org/2018/04/25/citygalleryart-of-new-york/
2017    Art at the Limits: City Gallery of New York. “Artist of the Week.”  City Limits, In-depth Reporting on New York City. https://citylimits.org/2018/04/25/citygalleryart-of-new-york/
2015.  Greek News. Independent Bi-Lingual Greek-American Weeklyn Newspaper Monday. April 6, 2015. The State of Greece:  Enoikiazetai-Poleitai/For Rent-For Sale. http://www.greeknewsonline.com/the-state-of-greece-enoikiazetai-poleitai-for-rent-for-sale/
2015   Kean Magazine. (Spring 2015).  Kean Galleries. Triada Samaras: The State of Greece.
2015   Cardenas, Gilbert H. (June 15, 2015). “Natural Art Like Andy Goldsworthy.” https://gilberthcardenas.wordpress.com/2015/06/15/natural-art-like-andy-goldsworthy/
2012   iefimerida.  (10/27/2012). O οικονομικός αναλυτής της κρίσης Γιάννης Βαρουφάκης τώρα παρουσιάζει και έργα τέχνης/ The economist Yanis Varoufakis now presents artworks  http://www.iefimerida.gr/node/73947 # ixzz2zmEqZPNP
2012  Handler, S.  (9/2012). “Triada Samaras:  The State of Greece: FOR RENT – FOR SALE.” Vital Space: Nature & Humanity. https://vitalspace.org/portfolio-item/the-state-of-greece-2012-ενοικιαζεται-πωλειται-for-rent-for-sale/
2012    Mills, J. (4/9/2012).  “In Gowanus Playgrounds Both Real and Imagined.”  The L Magazine.
2012.  Kelly, K. (4/5/2012) “Imagining an Ideal City: Brooklyn Utopias Show at the Old Stone House.”  Pardon Me for Asking. http://pardonmeforasking.blogspot.com/2012/04/imagining-ideal-city-brooklyn-utopias.html
2012.  Short, A. (3/27/2012). “Picture perfect: Artists explore 'Brooklyn Utopias' at Park Slope's Old Stone House.” Brooklyn Paper.  http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/35/13/24_brooklynutopias_2012_03_30_bk.html
2012  Meier, A. (5/14/2012). “Imagining Urban Art Utopias” HYPERALLRGIC/Sensitive to Art and Its Contents http://hyperallergic.com/51446/brooklyn-utopias/
2012   The City Sierran: New York City. "Triada Samaras photographs Hurricane Sandy flooding at Gowanus Canal"  Sierra Club

2011   Jaszi, Sabrina. "Teens Make Their Gowanus Death Masks" The Brooklyn Paper." Web. 26 Nov. 2011.
http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/32/44/32_44_sj_gowanus_masks.html
2011   "Toxic Gowanus Canal: Local Teens Create 'Airborne Contaminants' Masks." Pardon Me For Asking. Web. 26 Nov. 2011. http://pardonmeforasking.blogspot.com/2009/10/toxic- gowanus-canal-local-teens-create.html
2011   "New BHS Exhibit – Brooklyn Utopias? | Brooklyn Heights Blog." Brooklyn Heights Blog | Dispatches from America's First Suburb. Web. 26 Nov. 2011. <http://brooklynheightsblog.com/archives/12674>.
2011   "Triada Samaras, Image from "Carroll Gardens Democracy Wall"  Brooklyn Utopias?Web. 26 Nov. 2011.<http://brooklynutopias.com/artwork/944531_Triada_Samaras_image_from_Carroll.html>.
2011  "Imagining a Better Brooklyn"  Gotham Gazette - the Place for New York City Policy and Politics. Web. 26 Nov. 2011. <http://www.gothamgazette.com/events/feature_archive.php?e=239>
2011   "Carroll Gardens Democracy Wall Part of Jersey Exhibit"  Gowanus Lounge — Serving Brooklyn. Web. 26 Nov. 2011. <http://www.bobguskind.com/2008/12/17/carroll-gardens-democracy-wall-part-of-jersey-exhibit/>.
2011   “Brooklyn Utopias? Artists Consider Visions of an Ideal Brooklyn”  Brooklyn Historical Society Press Release. Web. 26 Nov 2011. <http://brooklynhistory.org/resources/press/bhs_2009_aug_25.pdf>.
3/10/2009 Triada Samaras Featured on News 12 Brooklyn Cable Television. "Death of a Blogger."
1/2008 Triada Samaras and Bob Guskind Featured on B-CAT (Brooklyn Independent Television). BCAT interviews Gowanus Lounge and CG CORD for “Interview” News Magazine Program.  
1/5/2008 The Brooklyn Papers, Brooklyn NY.  Brooklyn Papers reports: “8 to watch in ’08”  naming # 4:  Democracy Wall, Carroll Gardens: “Every couple of weeks a new mural and message pops up at the plaza on the corner of Second Place and Smith Street, and it’s a barometer for public sentiment on local news.”  
12/30/2007 Featured on News 12 Brooklyn Cable Television. “Triada Samaras and The Democracy Wall:  Art Wall turns into protest of Carroll Gardens development"  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjFx-OlXT10  Web. 26 Nov. 2011. <http://www.news12.com/archive/articleDetail.jsp?articleId=205063>.
Hodek, M. (2006). “Editor’s Discretion/Featured Artist: Triada Samaras”  Inter-view Bulletin: Teacher Writers for a Public Voice (TWPV), Teachers College/Columbia University. Volume 1, Issue 2.
2006: D’Addario, Darren, “Trash Talk” Time Out New York/Issue 546 March 16-22 2006
2001   
Laprel, S. “From Despair Comes Poem of Hope”.  The Haverhill Gazette, Haverhill, MA (2002, July 4-July 10).

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ACLU American Civil Liberties Union


 


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