Inside the Studio: Patricia Daher
In this edition of Inside the Studio, we explore the work and philosophy of Patricia Daher, a multidisciplinary artist whose practice delves into the relationship between humanity and the natural world. With a background in both mathematics and art, Patricia's creative process is informed by logic and precision while intertwined with deep respect for nature, ancient spiritual practices, and global environmental concerns. Her art not only serves as a medium of expression but also as a call to action, urging society to reevaluate its relationship with the environment. In this conversation, Patricia shares insights into her artistic journey, the inspiration behind her works, and her vision for the future.
Read on to learn more in an exclusive interview with Patricia Daher :
1. Your work focuses on the balance between human societies and the natural world. How
do you translate this philosophy into your art?
The theme of balance between the human world and the natural world is deeply rooted in the understanding of karma, or “what you sow, you reap.” This knowledge is not only a pillar of many ancient belief systems but also a universal law in physics, as stated by Newton’s Third Law of Motion: “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Karma is generated not only through how we relate to other humans but also by how we connect with the animal and plant kingdoms, often in a senseless and exploitative manner lacking empathy and awareness.
Improving our connection with nature and each other as humans will significantly improve humanity’s karma, thereby increasing peace on this planet. My work addresses this connection from various perspectives, inviting the viewer to contemplate these significant topics.
For instance, The Fruitful City collection juxtaposes landscapes and cityscapes with fruits to highlight the relationship between communities, their food sources, and nature’s contribution to our existence. People, now more than ever, are scrutinising labels and questioning the impact of the food items available to them in stores. These works were created after questioning the absence of fruit trees throughout New York neighbourhood's, particularly in light of the health food movement.
Plants Speak presents plants as sentient and intelligent beings capable of communication beyond the medium of words—through dreams and energy—a notion acknowledged by Native American, African, and Siberian shamans, among others. The Shipibo-Conibo of Peru, for example, create repetitive vibrational patterns illustrating their experience of plant songs, the Icaros. These patterns inspired the digital collection Vibrations and are echoed in The Alphabet collection. Through amplifying the voices of these cultures, these bodies of work aim to foster respect and consideration towards members of the plant kingdom, despite the perceived silence and still presence of the plants.
The Cosmic Ocean collection addresses our treatment of oceans as dumping grounds, which afflicts its inhabitants and consequently us. Similarly, the Birds of a Feather collages depict birds as social beings, similar to humans, highlighting the problem of unnecessary game hunting afflicting their communities. In my most recent work, Unwounding, a relational aesthetic performance, I actively remove staples, nails, and tape from city trees, directly taking action to change that balance.
2. How does your background in both mathematics and art influence your creative process
and the themes you explore?
Problem-solving is integral to being a professional artist. As a Mathematician, my approach to processing information is systematic and logical, strongly influencing the themes I explore and how I present them. My art-making process incorporates geometry, ratios, measurements, and arithmetic. For instance, works in the Fruitful City collection, such as the Miami Beach Pineapple and Mediterranean Green Grape, incorporate geometrical methods to construct symmetrical and balanced compositions. The development of certain collections is inspired by fractals; the works produced out of the Mediterranean Green Grape painting are an excellent example. The collages are meticulously composed puzzles. When creating patterns in the Alphabet collection and scaling works, precise measurements and calculations are essential. Additionally, some of the abstract portraits are of memorable math students. As for art, my education in Studio Art, Art History, and Art Market Studies, along with my experience in marketing and research, have been crucial in shaping my artistic journey. Understanding other artists, their styles, the historical movements they formed, and market evolution has provided me with a valuable perspective on developing my own body of work—its placement within the global contemporary art world as well as art historical contexts, and what it takes to be a successful artist.
3. Can you share more about your journey from studying mathematics to becoming a
multidisciplinary artist and environmental activist?
It has been an incredible journey from the beginning. I have always excelled in both Mathematics and Art, earning the nickname "The Artist" at school. I remember the time I decided to build a Phoenician Ship for a class project using tree bark from the school's pine trees. The principal had to step in, explaining to me how the bark protects the trees. Growing up in Lebanon, witnessing the deforestation of the surrounding mountains deeply affected me. This led me to create a maquette addressing this issue, winning the "My Tree UNESCO Environmental Award" in 9th grade.
As I transitioned to college, my career path took unexpected turns. The 2006 Summer War altered my plans to join the Graphic Design program at the Lebanese American University. I ended up in Illinois, where I was accepted into the Interior Design program at the Art Institute of Chicago; I did not attend. Circumstances mandated I leave back to New York, where my interests diverted to Architecture. While working on the mathematics pre-requisites for the program, I enjoyed the classes and teaching so much that I eventually decided on a career as a Mathematics Professor. While tutoring, I met my mentor, Cherisse Rodriguez, an artist, culinary chef, and astrologer. Her support and guidance significantly impacted my journey, leading me to ultimately embrace my artistic talents and pursue a double major in Studio Art. As I progressed through my education, the allure of Mathematics faded, and I found myself fully immersed in art, eventually building a substantial body of work focusing on nature. After graduating, working for Margery Newman PR and Nicole Straus PR ignited my curiosity about the business side of art, leading to a graduate education in Art Market Studies at the Fashion Institute of Technology. At that time, my advocacy for the environment on social media caught the attention of a family friend, a Peace Ambassador at the United Nations, who consulted me on strategic solutions for environmental concerns. Today, while I continue to utilize my artwork and social media presence to present solutions to critical environmental challenges, I am actively involved in being part of the solution as a Tree Stewart for NYC Parks.
4. Your art is described as autobiographical and influenced by globalisation and the age of
information. Can you elaborate on how these influences shape your work?
Now, more than ever, the world is connected. Artists have unprecedented access to art movements from the past and present, styles and techniques from all over the world, and access to artists' studios, hundreds of exhibitions, new materials, and processes, thanks to platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram Reels. A quick Google search yields a wealth of information on any field, including niche, esoteric, and taboo topics. AI and NFTs have revolutionised the art world.
This timeless global era is an exciting time to be an artist!
Through social media, I have learned techniques, sourced images for drafting, worked with materials shipped from abroad, and delved into various topics informing my work. Cosmic Ocean addresses mass consumption, both digital and material, in relation to the sensory overload of the mind and water pollution, a global concern. Fruitful City hints at food safety, sparked by the current health movement, facilitated by social media and access to information on international cuisines and food quality standards, as well as the efforts of food safety activists. At the same time, my works are an emotional timeline that evolves in tandem with my life experiences—souvenirs of significant moments.
Although the Fruitful City collection delves into food safety in our contemporary world, each painting is inspired by my travels. For instance, Mexico Mango showcases a massive mango inspired by my trip to Mexico, while Miami Beach Pineapple draws from the hospitality industry symbolised by a pineapple and the Art Deco architecture of Miami, painted just before a trip to Florida. Williamsburg Avocado was influenced by memories of the Japanese temples I visited in Kyoto and created after a walk in Brooklyn's Williamsburg.
The Alphabet Collection started during Hurricane Sandy while figuring out how to teach a dyslexic student. The Alphabet Korean Installation was created during the COVID pandemic while binge-watching K-dramas with friends, and the Arabic Alphabet drawings were inspired by my trip to Qatar with support from the Qatar America Institute for Culture.
The Cosmic Ocean works represent what was on my mind at the time of their making—it could be a pumpkin if created around Halloween, or a tooth if I had an upcoming dentist appointment. The Elements sculptures and the realisation that everything is made of matter emerged during my exploration of quantum physics and atomic structures while tutoring a student in chemistry. In the Totem collection, I delve into clay and texture, inspired by teaching a blind student and finding ways to help him see the images in the textbook. The Empathy Land collection is a product of my fascination with landscapes; the first piece in the series was made in Sedona, Arizona, inspired by both Arizona’s topography and the mountains of Lebanon. Birds of a Feather sheds light on the shooting of millions of birds for leisure over migratory routes, especially over Lebanon. At the same time, this collection was produced while developing an interest in birdwatching. The Dinkas series developed while working for a human rights activist from the Dinka tribe of South Sudan. Un-wounding is an act of environmental activism and, at the same time, very personal.
5. What role does experimentation with innovative materials and techniques play in your
practice?
In the late 1800s, during the time of Van Gogh, the introduction of brighter pigmented materials revolutionised the art world, resulting in the vibrant works that emerged then and beyond. The invention of the paint tube was an important innovation, allowing artists to paint outdoors and on the go, significantly influencing the art of their time.
In my paintings, I utilize acrylic pens to create crisp and clean lines on canvas, blurring the boundaries between drawing, illustration, and painting. I also paint with contemporary highly pigmented and metallic paints to produce the intensity experienced in my works.
My sculptures, Elements, are composed of glass marbles fused into solid cubical forms through a complex process developed from experimentation and research. The complex layout of The Alphabet Installations facilitates creating large-scale works that are easily transportable.
I have experimented with adhesives and plastics for days to create The Mediterranean Green Grape works; a series of archival-quality paintings on round acrylic discs shipped from the other side of the globe. The collages required exploring how several types of adhesives interact with various materials.
6. How do you incorporate concepts from ancient history, mythology, and religions into your
artwork?
I have always had a deep interest in theology and have been on a fascinating path exploring esoteric spiritual practices, mythology, and ancient history for many years. I incorporate these concepts directly through titles, and other times conceptually, embedded in symbolism, color, pattern, and form. Some of these concepts include repetition, alternative realities, dreamscapes, transcendence, axis mundi, and archetypes. The thing is, the sacred is always present in the mundane, and there are multiple layers to seeing.
The collections, The Alphabet, Elements, and Fruitful City, employ repetition as a seemingly trivial style, yet it is an integral tool for focus and transcendence. In mathematics, repeating a dot, a line, a plane, or a cubical form in one focused direction results in expansion from one dimension to another. In many religions, repetition is the essence of meditative practices, transforming the believer from the physicality of the 4th dimension to connecting with divinity in the 5th dimension and beyond.
The Cosmic Ocean and Energy Ink works are non-Euclidean spaces featuring fluid compositions representing dreamscapes inspired by tasseography, an ancient practice that still persists throughout Mediterranean cultures. The Alphabet collection draws on ancient Phoenician history, as does Cosmic Ocean. For example, Moods is a collection of powerful female archetypes. Every work in this collection is representative of powerful feminine energies and strengths, inspired by both Carl Jung’s understanding of archetypes and the powerful ancient goddesses of Phoenicia like Astarte, Athirat, Ashtaroot, Manah, and Tanit, among others.
The concept of alternative realities and parallel universes, well-known to shamans worldwide and explored in academic contexts by luminaries such as Carl Jung, Carlos Castaneda, Mircea Eliade, Helena Blavatsky, and Edgar Cayce, among others, is thoughtfully represented throughout the collections. For instance, in Miami Beach Pineapple, I depict various entrances leading to new worlds, while Mediterranean Green Grapes showcases multiple abstract renderings of the same scene to illustrate different mental states accessed through the mind and memory. The Fruitful City collection embodies the idea of "as above, so below," with macro elements such as cities and landscapes visible in the micro forms of fruit, and vice versa, considering the cultures existent on fruits’ surfaces.
The landscape collages in the Empathy Land and Birds of a Feather collections exemplify the metaphysical within the mundane. These surrealist works are rich in symbolism, often featuring water, land, and sky, referencing the underworld, middle realm, and higher realms explored by shamans. These worlds are also recognised as Hades, Earth, and Mount Olympus in Greek mythology, and as hell, earth, and heaven in monotheistic religions. The bridging axis between these realms, known as the Axis Mundi, is symbolised by a tree present in the landscapes and throughout the Plants Speak collection. In Flamingo Night Tree, chakra-like forms on the trunk symbolise the human energy body pathways, while in Flamingo Day Tree, the black and white patterns illustrate logic and duality, representing feminine and masculine energies. The birds featured throughout the Birds of a Feather collection symbolise spirits in dreamscapes.
7. What do you hope viewers take away from your art, particularly in terms of environmental
awareness?
Many things. To start, I hope viewers feel joy when experiencing my work and learn something new. But more so, my goal is to inspire a shift in perspective and raise awareness about the impact of daily decisions on the environment. I hope to encourage viewers to take action, whether by making small improvements to daily habits or initiating larger-scale changes.
For instance, simple steps such as refusing unnecessary paper bags, napkins, and utensils can have a significant environmental impact. I see many living trees treated as bulletin boards or walls on New York streets, but less obvious are the paper, shipping materials, napkins, furniture, and wooden objects we consume, without connecting these materials to the lives of sentient beings.
I've become more aware of the impact of consuming materials derived from trees and sentient beings, prompting a reconsideration of my own creative process, which I hope inspires other artists and designers in their approach to sustainability. While changing the hundreds of habits we have developed is challenging, and we cannot stop the cycle of life and death or fix the world’s problems overnight, we can certainly influence the speed of the cycle, its intensity, and brutality—one decision at a time, one person at a time—towards fixing our collective karma as human beings on this planet.
There's always room for improvement, and taking even one inspiring step towards a positive direction is better than doing nothing at all.
8. How do you see your work evolving in the coming years, especially in light of global
environmental challenges?
In a dream a few months ago, I saw myself in a room filled with body parts. It took me a month to understand this message. Staring at a drawing of a tree mounted on a wooden panel in my room, I realized—there is more than one tree in that picture; there were many. This was unsettling, considering the years I have spent consuming paper and wood to create hundreds of works and furnish my space.
Recently, I've been devoting significant time to learning about recycling, secondary markets, and sustainable companies actively working on solving environmental problems. As I finish up my current supply of paper and stretchers in my studio, I see myself transitioning away from paper and wood to develop my existing collections with archival materials less impactful on the environment, especially trees.
While working on the Masters of Sculpture exhibition at Bill Hodges Gallery, featuring the works of important sculptors from the African diaspora such as Richard Hunt, Melvin Edwards, John T. Scott, and Elizabeth Catlett, among others, I became very interested in sculpture and started learning how to weld. I am actively exploring recycling techniques, plastics, and sustainable methods to create archival works. I have been excited about collage for several years, and experiencing Romare Bearden’s collages up close and learning about his journey inspired me to further develop my skills in the medium.
While I really enjoy the physicality of art, I am also looking into NFTs and digital art, which eliminate the need for shipping boxes and single-use plastics. Currently, I have been learning data science and sewing techniques. I am excited to see the influence these new paths will have on my work.
Patricia Daher's art is a deeply personal yet globally resonant exploration of humanity’s relationship with the natural world. Through her work, she challenges us to reconsider our impact on the environment and invites us to take action, no matter how small. Her journey from mathematics to art and activism is a testament to the power of creativity in shaping a better future. As she continues to push the boundaries of her practice, we look forward to seeing how her work evolves in response to the environmental challenges of our time.
You can learn more about Patricia Daher and her work via these links: Website: https://www.patriciadaher.com/
Instagram: @patriciatdaher Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/patriciadaherstudio/photos
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