Biography
Samantha M. Eckert was born in Glen Cove, NY and raised in Brownsville, VT. She lived in New Mexico for many years and returned to Vermont in 2012. Eckert earned her MFA in Visual Art in 2015 from Vermont College of Fine Arts, Montpelier, VT; a bachelor’s from Vermont College of Norwich University, Montpelier, VT; and a Certificate in Museum Studies from the Institute of American Indian Arts, Santa Fe, NM. She has attended several artist residencies including, Anderson Ranch Art Center, Snowmass, CO; Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT; La Macina di San Cresci, Greve, Chianti, Italy; and was a two-time artist in residence at The Studios at MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA. Eckert has exhibited in MA, NH, NM, VT, and Italy. She is a Vermont-based emerging artist.
(Shown in photo with crocheted textile made by her grandmother, Antonietta Aloi Mercadante)
Artist Statement
Samantha Mercadante Eckert is a curator and multidisciplinary artist. Her practice is rooted in material culture and non-linear explorations inspired by wonder, memory-myth, ancestry, loss, longing, and socio-political themes. Her research incorporates historical, personal, and material memories. Over time, form emerges through careful actions and an awareness of how materials respond to touch. This process encourages abstraction and allows for a departure from pre-conceived narratives that might overshadow the poetic qualities of the materials and shapes; new meanings arise from gestures rather than complexity.
Eckert draws significant influence from her Italian heritage and the handcrafted objects created by her mother and grandmother. However, she hopes that the audience will perceive the work from their own perspective and cultural references.
