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The best things I have in life are my memories, and like a compulsive collector, I try to preserve, distort, and reimagine them. Central to my process of collection is my late mother's photographs, notes, diaries, and publications whose layers of identity, perception and loss guide me. By excavating her archive to revive the imprints of her existence, my material work reshapes it into a living channel that may once again be experienced.
Thomas Ogden writes of a 'primitive edge,' a space driven by sensation, texture, and emotion rather than logic. This tension mirrors my experience working with my mother’s archive of disjointed memories, fragmented writings, and scattered objects that resist coherence. In the chaos, I find flickers of her presence: a scrawled note that sounds just like her, or a photo where her expression feels familiar yet distant. It’s like skateboarding in high heels: precarious, awkward, yet strangely captivating. This mix is unapologetic. This friction between control and chaos fuels my practice, where structure emerges from disorder and fractured narratives find shape. I’ve always dreamed of skateboarding with red-bottom Louboutins on, such a vibe, right!
The tension between presence and absence becomes more apparent as I reflect on the pressure my mother felt to be the ideal woman. How couldn't a woman go crazy? Women are often taught to play nice, to smile, to be everything to everyone, but beneath the surface is an undercurrent of competition and pressure to outperform. These themes of desire, perception, and competition evolve over time, shifting as we navigate different spaces. Female competition often conceals vulnerability by presenting an image of strength and perfection, using control and performance to disguise the underlying insecurities and pressures. The media and societal standards perpetuate this divide, teaching us to measure our worth against external expectations, leaving us to pick up the pieces in the aftermath. My work searches for meaning in memory. The materials, textiles, glass, and print, make these intangible concepts of memory and loss physical. By layering and distorting images and symbols create an environment where memory is unstable, making it deeply human. I allow the viewer to confront the complex interplay between presence and absence, making the intangible real and giving form to the unseen. It's like wearing lipstick that’s just a little too bold or dancing like no one’s watching messy, raw, and a little bit daring, but completely your own.
-fromsamira
CV:
Education:
2020-2021 Champlain College Early College Program
2021-2025 School Of The Art Institute of Chicago B.F.A
Selected Work Experience:
2024 Leather Goods Production Intern
David 2 Leather Factory, Empoli, Florence Italy
Selected Exhibitions/Awards
2019 Fashion Show Designer
South End Arts and Business Association (SEABA) Fashion Show Designer Generator Makerspace, Burlington, VT
Vermont Agency of Education Presidential Scholar for the Arts 2020
2021 SAIC Creative Honors Scholarship
Feelings Cut in Half Two-person show with Yixuan Li Hardboiled Gallery, Chicago, IL 2024
Swallow Press Fabric Books, Vol.3 2023