 In the studio, visor down, heart open.
“The canvas does not judge. It simply receives. Every mark is allowed. Every mistake is information. Fear wants you to wait until you’re ready. Hope says: start now, exactly as you are.” This is from my book Fearless Artistry. You can order it now on Amazon (Kindle or paperback). What’s one thing you’ve been waiting to create “until you’re ready”? #FearlessArtistry #StudioVibes #CreateWithoutFear #AbstractArtist #UtahArtist  Textural moons infused with a sense of place, quietly watching over the Salt Lake City skyline.
One moon watches over all of us. In the studio, I build these layered surfaces slowly — pressing, carving, and letting the materials speak. Each moon feels like a quiet companion, a reflection of my own inner tides and the cycles I’ve moved through. They remind me that even in flux, something steady and luminous is always present.  Week 4 with our veterans, made possible by the Utah Museum of Fine Arts.
A sunset over the Great Salt Lake. Every week I’m deeply moved by the creativity, courage, and goodwill of this community. Special thanks to Laura Sharp Wilson for making this possible, and for Evey M. for volunteering your time.  “Lips of Light”
Mixed media on canvas, 28” x 22” I rolled tiny paper prayers and tucked them into the open lips of the painting. They ended up looking like cigarettes. Painting as altar. Painting as prayer.  New pieces delivered to Gallery MAR.
Lucky to be among the hands and hearts that keep this place alive - gentle, persistent, present. Shop Available Works https://www.gallerymar.com/artists/samantha-da-silva  For over a decade, I’ve carried the quiet ache of rheumatoid arthritis in silence. Not because my pain is special—it isn’t. Pain is simply human, ordinary, inevitable.
Yet in choosing to meet it with as much grace as I can muster, something shifts: I become peace amid the earthquake. I stay present, gentle, unafraid to see the cracks. Because the cracks are not flaws to hide. They are openings. The wound is the place where the light enters you. (As Rumi reminds us, and as Leonard Cohen sang: there is a crack in everything—that’s how the light gets in.) These fractures in body and spirit have taught me more than wholeness ever could. They’ve cracked me open to deeper creativity, to truer connection, to the quiet bravery of simply being here. In my “Cracks” series, I honor those fissures—not as endings, but as invitations. Light pours through the breaks we once wished away. Healing doesn’t erase the scar; it illuminates it. If you’re carrying your own unseen pain today, know this: You don’t have to perform perfection. Your cracks are sacred. They are how the light reaches the world through you. Be gentle with yourself. Stay with it. Let the light in.  Working with our veterans has been one of the most heartfelt honors of my teaching career.
I’m deeply grateful to the Utah Museum of Fine Arts and the William E. Christoffersen Salt Lake Veterans Home for partnering to make this meaningful experience possible. Heartfelt thanks also go to Laura Wilson and Ashley Farmer for their unwavering support and dedication. A special shout-out to Laura for beautifully capturing that tender moment as we danced to Willie Nelson’s classic “Mamas, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys.” Truly unforgettable.  Delivered a fresh new piece to Gallery MAR today. Spring is in the air, and the energy in the gallery feels alive. I feel lucky to be included among the dynamic artists and dedicated staff who make this place so special.
(You wouldn’t know it from these photos—my eyes are closed again. It always takes a few tries to get one with them open.) Shop Gallery Mar  Layers of blue, white, and metallic building upward.
Personal, atmospheric. A quiet bridge between the outside world and the one within. Inner Bloom , Mixed Media on Canvas, 48” x 30” |
