Meet the Artist: Sima Schloss
While Sima Schloss is no stranger to Beacon Gallery, we are pleased to introduce her formally.
Featured in Beacon Gallery's two-artist exhibition The Infinite Figure, New York-based Sima Schloss has been making art since childhood. She received her MFA in Painting at Lehman College and has been featured in exhibitions and art fairs throughout the United States. When not working as a professional artist she is also a professor of humanities, currently teaching Art History within the CUNY system.
Schloss’s work seeks to bridge the emotional content individuals, particularly women, seek to dissimulate under a smooth facade. Her work seeks to delve beneath the pretense and explore the incalculable facets of the human psyche.
Sima Schloss, We are all gathering together alone, 9" x 12"
My work is a bridge between abstraction and figuration. The abstraction of a figurative piece allows my mind to be free and unfettered. This allows me a sense of fearlessness because there’s no preconceived notion of what the end will be. With no preconceived notion of the end product, my figurative work is allowed to take its own shape and form in a way similar to how an abstract painting emerges from the canvas, rather than is planned by the artist. I work from a real or imagined figure and then add layers to it. Essentially my figures are just shapes. I start with the basic forms and respond to them. Because I am working on the figure as an abstraction rather than as a portrait per se, it allows me to create imagined beings using non-traditional materials. Rather than reproducing a person or a “look” I seek to recreate emotions, experiences, or moments in our shared experiences. These moments are evoked in the titles I carefully choose for my pieces.
Sima Schloss
With a focus on figurative expression, the works on view in The Infinite Figure will include those previewed at SCOPE Art Show Miami Beach 2021 as well as new creations.
The Infinite Figure explores the human role and relationship to culture and society, as well as the ever-changing nature of self and identity. Artists Schloss and Thorne hope to engage viewers on a more personal, reflective level through authentic works focused on figurative expression through the human form. Generating relevant discussion of social bounds, expectations, self-preservation, and effective contemporary expression, The Infinite Figure is an embodiment of evolving human experience and contemporary manifestation of our humanity.
Each artist's work showcases their unique style and expression through paint and mixed-media forms. Introspection on individual existence, identity, and our place within society places this show into a larger context of how our physical bodies allow us to express ourselves. Schloss and Thorne both engage with these questions through their own unique viewpoints. Nonetheless, a theme of ‘the individual in modern society’ is present in many of The Infinite Figure’s works.
Sima Schloss, Gaslit, 26" x 42"
In a 2018 interview with Boston Voyager, Schloss shared:
Human beings are complex creatures. I have found that in order to truly know and understand who a person is, it takes many years to see who they are. Why so long? People seem to have layers and reveal themselves slowly and only in different situations. Perhaps we never know someone until we see them in love, despair, or in danger.
Understanding the masks and layers we hide behind is the focus of my work. My process involves creating blind contour drawings and disseminating them. I assemble them back together in different ways. The tearing and putting together the ripped pieces is similar to how human beings process emotions. My goal is to tell all the stories that every person holds within themselves.
Sima Schloss, 2018
The full interview can be found here: Art & Life with Sima Schloss
We were so glad to have the opportunity to sit down and hear from Sima about her most recent experience, process, and work behind the art currently showing in The Infinite Figure.
How do topics related to self and identity affect your work?
My work is all about perception of myself and of others. My goal is to find out what is going on within the interior of a person and bringing it out to show at the surface. Exteriors are not very interesting to me. There is always more beneath, and I want to explore that.
How does working as an artist impact the way you navigate life in society?
I am an empath... I absorb so much around me. Sometimes it's wonderful, and other times it's awful.. I have a tough time hiding my feelings.
What do you feel is lacking in current society/life which you hope to promote through art?
To me, the answer is simple: empathy and understanding of one another.
Sima Schloss, Me and my own council, 31" x 42"
What do you hope viewers will take from your art?
With not only the works on view in The Infinite Figure, but the entirety of my focus, I hope that viewers will take time to question what they see, feel, and find in my art. There is no single correct message or perspective - every response is subjective, yet still valuable.
Do you have any future projects planned/particular hopes for future projects?
Yes! I'm currently working on a series about the Women of the Roman Empire. Its fascinating! They were such interesting complex characters - I can’t wait to explore them more in my work!
Sima Schloss, Realize / Real Eyes
Special thanks to Sima for taking the time to share with us!
To keep up with Sima Schloss and her artwork, visit her website and follow her on IG @simzee
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For all other inquiries or to get in touch with Beacon Gallery directly, please reach out to contact@beacongallery.com