Samantha Walrod: Closer to Home

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Samantha Walrod, "Green Flower Clock," 2022

mixed media on panel, 36" x 36"

Opening Reception: Saturday, September 17: 2-4 PM

Newzones is excited to present "Closer to Home", an exciting new solo exhibition by Alberta-based artist, Samantha Walrod.

Walrod’s new body of work continues her exploration of flora and mixed media. These painterly collages are intricately textured, with mixed media applied between and atop layers of paint, creating a visually enticing tactile surface for viewers to enjoy. Walrod describes herself as ‘not denying the surface of things, certainly not of painting’, and it is the surface, in fact, that is central to her most recent investigations into growth, decay, and the fleeting beauty of her garden in bloom.

This year, Walrod moved out of an apartment and into a house, where she spends time with her partner and her young son in the garden. The garden and the summer season echo the slow but fleeting time that is also required for tending her family and herself. Raising a child and growing a garden have shifted her focus inward and as a result, she has found herself leaving the house less and staying closer to home.

As the artist considers her family, these paintings are a visual manifestation of time passing, birth, life, and ageing. Flowers inspired by the garden are organized into quadrants which loosely refer to the quadrants of a clock face. Branch patterns energetically emit from a central location, offering an optimism to the viewer that is felt by the artist at this time.

Samantha Walrod received her Masters of Fine Art (Painting) from the University of Alberta in 2013 and graduated from the BFA program at ACAD (now AUArts) with distinction. In 2018, Walrod was awarded an artist residency at the RBC Work Room, at the Art Gallery of Alberta. Her work can be found in various private collections worldwide. Her work has been collected by Art Gallery of Alberta (Edmonton), Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Peaks Hotel and Suites (Banff), and DMH Family Law (Calgary) to name a few.