 New Workshop Just Announced: ONLY 1 SPOT LEFT! Saturday, August 15th, 2020 @ Workshop SLC, Salt Lake City, UT For more information & to register: https://www.samanthadasilva.com/store/p251/FEARLESS_ABSTRACT_PAINTING_WORKSHOP.html  I am grateful to have contributed 11 of my original works to this year's winner for BEST INTERIOR DESIGN. Thanks to Copper HAUS Design, Visionary Homes & Northern Wasatch Parade of Homes.  I shot these photos just moments before I received news of my father's passing, and my life changed. Even in death he held the well-being of his family in his highest regard. To hear this news whilst immersed in the spectacular landscape of Yellowstone National Park was an immense gift. I am in his deepest gratitude. As I witnessed the sun set behind the horizon, the steaming geysers evaporate and begin their climb towards the heavens, I felt like I was witnessing my father's spirit. Death is not a morbid thought. Death is a great teacher. Life is precious. Life is brief.  Getting a picture of my dad is extremely rare. Getting a picture of my dad inside my art studio is even more rare. This is one of the last photos I took of him. I liken my dad to a Snow Leopard: an extremely private, elusive creature, who's stories and adventures border on myth. He was one of the most fascinating creatures I have ever known. My father taught me many things. And although my mother taught me how to paint, my father taught me how to dream.  “How was your workshop this weekend?” She asked in earnest. “Awesome!” I answered. “It felt so good to be teaching again. But at the same time, a part of me felt like a bit of an impostor.” “What do you mean?” She said with raised eyebrows. “At times I feel so inadequate. How can I stand in front of a class and teach fearlessness when I have so much fear?”  Thank you, thank you, thank you to Kimball Art Center for making this workshop a reality for us! There was ink, collage, plaster, grout, salt, sand, sawdust, repurposed canvasses, drying our works in the sun, community, connection, encouragement, compassionate critiques, breakthroughs, and socially distanced group photos. A special thanks to all of my students for embracing fearlessness "on" and "off" the canvas.  Day One of "Fearless Abstract Painting" at the Kimball Art Center in Park City, Utah. A "SOLD OUT" workshop used to mean 12 participants. Now it's 6! Plus, I've never taught while wearing a mask until today. The world has certainly changed, and I am so happy to know that "Fearless" painting is still a part of the new world we are creating. A huge thank you to the staff & students who made today possible for us.  Sensitive to both place and the environment, this collection of highly textured paintings were made using foraged materials including: red dirt, salt, sand, sawdust, repurposed paint, local newspapers, and coal. The beauty of decay imposed by the elements retorts to the brevity of our own lifespans in the grandeur of time.  Our first "Painting in the Park" event was a huge success, so we've decided to make it happen again! Announcing 3 upcoming event dates:  The New York Times called it “the most famous work of American art that almost nobody has ever seen in the flesh.” The artist who designed it said it was “the edge of the sun, a boiling curve, an explosion rising into a fiery prominence.” |