Samia Halaby

B. 1936, Palestine

Born in Al Quds (Jerusalem), Palestine in 1936, Samia Halaby's family relocated to Lebanon in 1948 and three years later to the United States. She obtained a Bachelor of Science and Design from the University of Cincinnati. Halaby began her career teaching art in Hawaii and had her first solo exhibition. She achieved a significant milestone as the first female professor to teach at the Yale School of Art in Connecticut. Throughout the years, she frequently traveled to the Middle East, Europe, and Cuba, actively participating in various art activities. In 1993, she established the Kinetic Painting Group at the Brooklyn Museum in New York. Samia played a crucial role in organizing the exhibition 'Made in Palestine' in New York's Chelsea neighborhood. In 2015, she received a prestigious retrospective exhibition at the Beirut Exhibition Center.

Halaby’s work encompasses both abstraction and figurative drawing, with a focus on politically oriented pieces. Halaby's approach to abstraction varies, ranging from exploring geometric still life to creating free-form collaged abstractions by joining pieces of canvas. She has created political posters and banners for anti-war causes and has been featured in "The Design of Dissent" publication. Her artistic development over the past five decades has been influenced by principles of abstraction found in nature and a materialist approach. She draws inspiration from historical applications of abstraction, including Russian Constructivism, traditional Arabic arts, and Islamic architecture. The visual culture of Palestine, the natural environment, and the dynamism of New York City also inform her artwork.

Her extensive body of work includes over 3,000 pieces across various mediums such as paintings, digital media, sculptures, artist books, drawings, and limited edition prints.

About her Work

Captivated by the world of computing since her time as a graduate student at Indiana University, Halaby developed a keen interest in the intersection of art and technology. Embracing this fascination, she obtained a personal computer, an Amiga, and embarked on the captivating project of programming paintings in motion accompanied by sound. This endeavor allowed her to convey a more comprehensive impression of her life experiences through her artwork.

Halaby dedicated herself to learning programming and created her kinetic paintings through programming rather than utilizing animation software. She approached her digital paintings with the same aesthetic intent as her oil and acrylic works. Instead of applying paint to canvas and stepping back to assess her progress, she would incorporate program commands, compile the program, and then run it to evaluate its value. This process enabled her to bring her artistic vision to life in the digital realm.

Kinetic Painting Group (1992-1997): Paintings programmed on the PC using the C language, accompanied by percussions performed by Kevin Nathaniel and Hasan Bakr. 9:00 min.

Move, Moving, Moved (1987): An ongoing digital painting created using a painting program on the Amiga. 13:54 min.

Dima Hajjar

Zaven Hadichian