Artist of the Week

Christian Sampson

March 14, 2011

Christian Sampson is an artist who lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. He received his MFA from Hunter College in 2006.

What are some recent, upcoming or current projects you are working on? I recently showed a video projection titled “Giant” in the group show Matinee curated by artists Patrick Brennan and Lauren van Haaften-Schick. The show was at St. Cecilia’s, an old nun’s convent in Brooklyn.  This winter I participated in Tide Pool,  a group show curated by the artists Denise Kupferschmidt and Ariel Dill at Sara Meltzer Gallery/Projects.  Last year my wife, the artist Ariel Dill and I had our first two person show together called Inglenook at Southfirst Gallery in Brooklyn. It was the first time we collaborated on works together. We constructed and painted Wilhelm Reich’s Orgone Accumulator Blankets from his F.B.I. confiscated instructions. The blankets were hung throughout the space and the viewer was invited to interact with them while looking at the work. Here is an interview about Inglenook on the Old Gold Blog.  Currently I’m working on a music mix for Late at Nite.

What materials do you use in your work and what is your process like? I’ve been working with Plexiglas, polymers, wood, dyes, light and shadow. My process is mostly experimental and changes from project to project. I find the process of art making a sort of giant lopsided spiral that always brings you back to where you started, except everything is totally different and the same. A 33 1/3 rpm deja vu in a way.

When did your interest in art begin? As a child, mostly out of a mixture of mischief and curiosity.

What kinds of things are influencing your work right now? The writings of Paul Scheerbart and Claude Bragdon.

What artists are you interested in right now? Josef and Anni Albers, Harry Smith, Yves Klein, Hilma Af Klint, Sigmar Polke, Atsuko Tanaka, Robert Irwin, Melvin Edward Nelson

What’s your favorite thing about New York? The Met.

What was the last exhibition you saw that stuck out to you? Pablo Picasso’s Guitars at Moma, Paul Thek at the Whitney, Brion Gysin at the New Museum, Obsidian Mirror-Travels at the Getty

If you could go anywhere in the world where would you go and why? Angkor Watt. I’d love to see it in person.

Favorite music?  Ambergris!  Composed of artists Matthew Thurber and Brian Belott– I’ve seen them perform live recently and they’re amazing. Messiaen, Moondog, Delia Derbyshire, Mort Garson, Ruth White, Les Ambassadeurs, Dr. Who Theme.

Top 3 favorite or most visited websites and why?  Bibliodyssey always has really great images from old books, Miniature Garden is really great and has been doing some interesting projects with artists, Accidental Mysteries is a great place to go to find strange things.  My own blog, halfmanhalfcookie, I use as an online notebook to keep things I find for myself or to send to friends.

What are you really excited about right now? Cooking at home and trying new recipes.