Samantha Scherer

SAMANTHA SCHERER
In this new body of work, Seattle artist Samantha Scherer continues to explore the aftermath of conflict with a broader focus on human vs. nature vs. human nature. In particular, she is focusing on human resiliency in the aftermath of conflict and disaster, and the ways that people prepare for, respond to, and move through challenging circumstances. Continuing to work on an intimate scale, this exhibit will include a series of small, detailed graphite drawings made from collected media photographs in the wake of natural disasters.

Scherer has exhibited works on paper throughout the United States.  She received her MFA from the University of Washington in 1997. Since that time, she has received 4 GAP Grants from Artist Trust (1999, 2006, 2009, 2013), and was an Finalist for the Betty Bowen Award in 2015. Her work is included in the collections of the Henry Art Gallery at the University of Washington, Seattle WA, the Microsoft Collection, Redmond, WA,  and the City of Seattle Portable Works Collection, Seattle WA. This is our 3rd solo exhibit with work by Samatha Scherer.  Scherer lives and works in the Seattle area with her husband and young daughter.

ARTIST STATEMENT
I am drawn to narratives about vulnerability, triumph and perseverance. Addicted to crime podcasts, murder mysteries and stories about nature’s fury, I am interested in how people react in challenging circumstances and how their choices affect themselves, others, and ultimately the record of the event.

These pastimes reflect an abiding fascination with how conflict is portrayed in contemporary popular culture and directly influence the work that I make. My work references television and internet images depicting a range of widely recognized events and icons from natural disasters to television crime dramas. By isolating and reproducing details from these images, I create drawn and painted snapshots that are elusively familiar with the goal to compile a personal catalog of history and legend as it happens, focusing on the line between truth and fiction and where it is blurred by individual experience.

My investigation of the human vs. nature narrative has been focused most recently on the destructive forces unleashed by large weather events (such as hurricanes and tornados) and how they affect people and their dwellings. In “Weathered”, I’m continuing to explore the aftermath of disasters. In particular, I am focusing on human reaction and resiliency, the ways that people prepare for, respond to, and endure challenging circumstances.