Multi-layered process of drawing & painting nature.
”Sam, the artist, is herself a force of nature, so it is doubly fitting that her works so often deeply explore, capture, and re-imagine nature and all of its forces.”
My work is a culmination of a life long history in the arts: fine arts, dance, textile design and decorative arts. These experiences inform my paintings through skillful color arrangements, aqueous movements, technical proficiency, and deliberate patterns with which I form my compositions.
My History
I had aspirations to be a music box dancer. The ballerina that pops up and twirls in a fun pose and tutu. When that didn’t work out, I turned to the dream of being a painter. I’m not sure why since I don’t recall ever being in a museum or gallery in my youth, but I was drawn into the world of art, nonetheless.
My professional career in the arts started when I was nineteen. I landed the opportunity to design textiles for a national ladies accessory firm in Dallas, Ginnie Johansen Designs. An adventure that had me traveling across the globe for over ten years. I left textile design to earn my BFA in painting and graduated from Indiana University at Purdue University as a Chancellor’s Scholar. I held the highest GPA and won the opportunity to study for a month in China at the Hunan Normal University.
I was fortunate to receive several fellowships and grants to set up studios in various locations ranging from the Berkshire mountains to Central Europe. My absolute favorite residency was at the Egon Schiele Art Centrum in Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic for eight months.
In 2008 I moved to the artist warehouse district in downtown Houston. Five years later I married and moved an hour northwest to the country — a new landscape to set roots and grow in ways I could only imagine. Nature is seen through every window of our home. It’s a beautiful way to observe the evolving scenery and wildlife. This is where abstract nature paintings began.
Follow Sam on Instagram to see new works and ideas ↓
