artists

SAMANTHA FRENCH

To view all work available by Artist Samantha French visit artsy. Born and raised in north central Minnesota, Samantha French graduated from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design in 2005. French’s current body of work explores the idea of escape, the tranquility and nostalgia for the lazy summer days of her childhood. The series is inspired by Samantha’s own reflections and memories of her childhood summers spent in the lakes of Northern Minnesota. French actively exhibits her paintings and is included in many private and public collections throughout the country while her work has garnered extensive international and national press. She is a full-time painter and keeps a studio in Brooklyn, New York. "My current body of work is focused on swimmers underwater and above. Using vague yet consuming memories from my childhood summers spent immersed in the tepid lakes of northern Minnesota, I attempt to recreate the quiet tranquility of water and nature; of days spent sinking and floating, still and peaceful. These paintings are a link to my home and continual search for the feeling of the sun on my face and warm summer days at the lake. They are my escape, a subtle reprieve from the day-to-day. At the same time, I am drawn to an idealistic time before my own, where swim caps and wool swimsuits were commonplace. This combination of memory, observation and photography has allowed me to preserve the transitory qualities of water and remembrance."

My current body of work is focused on swimmers underwater and above. Using vague yet consuming memories from my childhood summers spent immersed in the tepid lakes of northern Minnesota, I attempt to recreate the quiet tranquility of water and nature; of days spent sinking and floating, still and peaceful. These paintings are a link to my home and continual search for the feeling of the sun on my face and warm summer days at the lake. They are my escape, a subtle reprieve from the day-to-day.

Education

  • 2005 BFA, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Minneapolis, MN

Selected Publications

  • Inset, Nashville Arts
  • Inset, T- Mag New York Times
  • Cover, Single Carefree Mellow Cover, Seven Magazine
  • Cover, Dans Papers
  • inste, Minnesota Monthly
  • Cover, Professional Artists Magazine, Cover, MN Women’s Press
  • Cover, Her Magazine
  • Inset, MISC Magazine
  • Inset, Papermag
  • Inset, The Rake
  • Multiple online publications

Select Exhibitions

  • Solo Exhibition, Escape, Sirona Fine Art, Hallandale Beach, FL, 2016
  • Solo Exhibition, Surfacing, Minnesota Marine Art Museum, Winona, MN, 2015
  • Solo Exhibition, Groveland Gallery, Minneapolis, MN, 2014
  • Solo Exhibition, Splash, Todd James Gallery, Provincetown, MA, 2012
  • Solo Exhibition, Endless Summer, Platform LES, New York, NY, 2012
  • Solo Exhibition, Sea Change Cont., Todd James Gallery, Provincetown, MA, 2012
  • Solo Exhibition, Sea Change, Soo Visual Arts Center, Minneapolis, MN, 2012
  • Solo Exhibition, Open Swim, Left Bank Gallery, Essex, CT, 2011
  • Solo Exhibition, New Work, Ridgewater College Gallery, Willmar, MN, 2009
  • Solo Exhibition, New Works, Toomer Gallery, Soo Visual Arts Center, Minneapolis, MN, 2008
  • Solo Exhibition, New Painting, Central Lakes College, Brainerd, MN, 2006
  • Group Exhibition, Rarity Gallery Summer Salon Show, Mykonos, Greece, 2014
  • Group Exhibition, Coast to Coast, New York Design Center, New York, NY, 2014
  • Group Exhibition, ArtMRKT San Francisco / Tanner Hill Gallery, San Francisco, CA, 2013
  • Group Exhibition, WOMANHOOD/UNRESTRICTED, TNC Gallery, New York, NY, 2013
  • Group Exhibition, Beautifully Boring, Tanner Hill Gallery, Chattanooga, TN, 2013
  • Group Exhibition, Continued exhibition, Stark + Kent Gallery, Palm Springs, CA, 2012
  • Group Exhibition, Beautifully Boring, Tanner Hill Gallery, Chattanooga, TN, 2012
  • Group Exhibition, Joe the art of coffee, Chelsea, NY, 2012
  • Group Exhibition, Barnes and Thornburg, Minneapolis, MN, 2012
  • Group Exhibition, Cool, TNC Gallery, New York, NY, 2011
  • Group Exhibition, 125th Anniversary, MCAD Gallery, Minneapolis, MN, 2011
  • Group Exhibition, Plein Aire, Groveland Gallery, Minneapolis, MN, 2011
  • Group Exhibition, Contemporary Classics, Groveland Gallery, Minneapolis, MN, 2011
  • Group Exhibition, Recent Work, 801 Artist Lofts, Minneapolis, MN, 2011
  • Group Exhibition, Painting in Place, Groveland Gallery, Minneapolis, MN, 2010
  • Group Exhibition, Unwind, Lana Santorelli Gallery, New York, NY, 2010
  • Group Exhibition, Art Bazaar, Lyons Weir Gallery, New York, NY, 2010
  • Group Exhibition, Emerging Artists Show, Rabbit Hole Studios, Brooklyn, NY 2009
  • Group Exhibition, Summer Group Show, Groveland Gallery, Minneapolis, MN, 2009
  • Group Exhibition, Soo Too, Soo Visual Arts Center, Minneapolis, MN, 2009