Artist Statement
My current work leans on my training in classical realism bridging the gap between rigorous life observation and abstraction. By filtering the study of form, light, and gesture through the lenses of memory, movement, and emotion; I create works with gouache on watercolor paper that are both intuitively expressive and deeply grounded in my lived experience.
Drawing inspiration from Renaissance painting, the great masters, and my own travels, I aim to balance traditional realism with expressive experimentation.
While I focus on life drawing using the Bargue and cast methods, in November 2024, I began experimenting with gouache for its immediacy and fluidity. This shift allowed me to work more spontaneously, and the directness of the medium proved both liberating and gratifying.
In parallel with observational studies, I paint clouds, flowers, and other forms from nature purely from imagination, blending memory and emotion to evoke a sense of other worldliness.
Each piece I make is an attempt to hold a fleeting moment and translate quiet internal observation into something both intimate and enduring while also being ephemeral.
Prints sold on this site are made from original artworks that are also available for sale. Each print is produced and shipped locally, helping support nearby makers and reduce environmental impact.
For inquires about purchasing original artworks please fill out the form on the CONTACT PAGE.
About Samantha
American artist, Samantha Cassidy (b.1969) has spent decades making art. Her current work attempts to merge realism and abstraction. Using memory, movement, and the passage of time through observation and emotions. The work is loaded with color, shape, form, and layering.
Raised in a family of creatives, her grandmother and mother were painters, and her father an architect, she was immersed in the arts from an early age. Trained in both classical ballet and fine art, Samantha developed a deep sensitivity to gesture, form, and composition. She studied at the Art Students League and later at the Hartford Art School, where she was mentored by Ellen Carey, Fred Wessel, and Mary Frey. Her many years of working in the photography industry as a visuals editor with the utmost talented photographers and artists further refined her eye for light and image making.
Influenced by her love for the great masters and Renaissance painting, her practice blends traditional realism with an intuitive expressive approach. She is currently focused on learning how to draw realistically from life using the Bargue and cast method techniques, while creating paintings using gouache on paper for a more immediate and experimental approach to making art.
Samantha was born and raised in NYC and currently calls Madrid, Spain home.
For inquires on purchasing original art work, commissions and collaborating on special projects please fill out the form on the CONTACT PAGE.
Flowers No 4, Gouache on Mixed Media Paper, 14 x 21.6 cm, April 2025
Eye from Cast Sculpture of David, Staedtler Pencil on Caballo Paper, February 2022.