Five on the First

March 2025
Sam Branden

Sam Branden (b. 1991, Cleveland, OH) is a painter based in Brooklyn, NY.

“My work begins with everyday happenings that catch my eye—unexpected juxtapositions, color pairings, or moments on the street. Combinations of material are sorted through and implemented into my fabric-based paintings to express memories and fleeting impressions, stimulated by my environment. My daily experiences and encounters are filtered through an interest in subcultures such as graffiti and street fashion, in contrast to my upbringing spent absorbing Northeast Ohio’s natural landscape. This dichotomy of influences shape how I interpret and respond to moves I make while working in the studio. Everything I make is some sort of collage; the works are layered, and incorporate painted canvas, clothing shards, and found detritus, all of which are applied, built upon, or sewn by hand with needle and thread. Intersecting stitching and swaths of bright color tend to demarcate sections of the work, similar to how neighborhoods border each other on a bus map. The use of mesh spandex has become crucial to the new work, as its able to convey movement while distorting and veiling layers beneath. A faux pixelation and spacial/optical effects begin to activate in the most densely layered areas, which point toward and echo the artificiality of modern life. This fusion of materials, textures, and references are an attempt to capture the energy, contradictions, and evolving character of contemporary existence, especially that of my home here in New York.”

CV