chalk pastel on paper; each 11×11″

“I make quiet paintings in a noisy world. My work is an intimate meditation on humble objects and the detritus of studio life. I aim to promote a reengagement with the mundane while creating a moment of reflection for the viewer. The artist’s studio is full of memory; its history is evident in the residue layered on the walls and floor, as well as in the dusty objects scattered around the room. These remnants serve as a metaphor for the imprints people leave behind on each other and on the world. By painting forgotten corners, blank expanses, and abandoned objects, I explore the duality of absence and presence while questioning the intangibility of loss. Emptiness is an illusion. Even in silence, there is a tremendous amount of noise.”

ARTIST BIO: Samantha Haring makes quiet paintings in a noisy world. She earned her MFA from Northern Illinois University and her BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Samantha was one of the 2015–2016 Artists-in-Residence at Manifest Gallery. Her work has been published in New American Paintings and recently in INDA 14. She currently maintains a studio in Cincinnati, where she spends an inordinate amount of time staring at the color of dust.