Samira Shaheen

I’m an interdisciplinary artist with a focus on painting. Painting to me is a reflection of my experience in the world  For me, the process is to use the language of art, the juxtaposition of color, and lines.  My work can be abstract, representational or three dimensional, painted in acrylic or watercolor.  As a catalyst for these ideas, I use archival symbols, collage, found objects, and various mixed medium to explore the current political and social issues and how they impact us  I paint using visible marks and materials on the canvas, scraping and adding thick layers of paint to create texture and depth, allowing the paintings to speak.

My multicultural background, activism and many travels inspire my art Using memory and my emotional response I begin to map and explore these ideas as well as exploring the self in relation to the human condition: how societal morals, prejudices and our aggression toward each other affect us.  The  challenge for me is to explore these ideas through the chosen media and work through a series of the same subject matter.  Sometimes a painting begins with a particular idea or energy but through my interaction with the process, it materialize in  an unplanned and exciting place.

Samira Shaheen earned a Bachelor of Arts and Philosophy, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Carnegie Mellon University.  To further her art, she studied painting with Phillip Malicoat in Provincetown, Massachusetts.and drawing the figure with Jack Kramer.  Other workshops included the study of watercolors and Chinese Sumi painting.  Presently, she is a member of the the Associated Artist of Pittsburgh,The Pittsburgh Society of Artists ,and the Pittsburgh Watercolor Society.  She exhibited in many galleries in Pittsburgh over the years including the Three Rivers Art Show  More recently, she was invited to be in the Associated Artist of Pittsburgh 106 Annual Exhibition curated  by Taras Matla who is Associate Director and current acting director of the University of Maryland Art Gallery. 

Samira’s solo exhibitions were in Nantucket and at the Spinning Plate Gallery.  She is actively pursing her art career and exhibiting.

Samira is on the Pittsburgh Artist Registry, instagram @artbysamira007, and the Associated Artist of Pittsburgh Web page.

She can be contacted at sgirlbear@gmail.com  and also at 412-992-0174