As a little girl I was always involved in the arts; Creating games with magical planets to visit; dressing up other children in outer space costumes; drawing; painting, directing. Eventually, I worked for the Smithsonian, the IMF, and other organizations, where I traveled to remote and exotic places. I thought the creativity and excitement of these jobs and my life could substitute for actually making my art.
It was in 2001 when I returned to the visual arts, that I realized that creating something tangible out of the hidden and non-verbal places within me, gave me a satisfaction and sense of wholeness I didn’t know I missed. In essence, I am my art.
Printmaking creates a kind of magic when the press rolls and reveals hidden surprises, like those secrets in my soul. Papermaking allows me to capture the alien creatures that formed in my childhood. I try to capture the elusiveness of the moment with movement; using scribbles, marks, and textures from plant fibers, my handmade papers, and found materials. I like strong colors and elements to elicit the powerfulness and potential of the human mind. In all mediums, I love the complexity of combining the seemingly incongruous elements made by man and nature. Nature is the original source of man’s creations.
Artist Biography
Andrea Snyder, BFA, cum laude Tyler School of Art, MFA program NYU with additional studies at Wharton, University of the Arts, and Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, is a prize-winning printmaking & mixed media artist who has exhibited in the U.S. and Great Britain. She has taught art classes at University of the Arts, Main Line Arts Center, Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia School District,The American School in London and the American International School in Zurich, as well as taught craft marketing at the Crafts Center in MD, the Nova Scotia Designer Craft Council, Cape Breton Centre for Craft & Design, and the South African & Canadian consulates. In addition, she has done product development & craft marketing in 22 countries in Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. Currently, her art combines multiple mediums in collaged abstracts on paper, canvas, and Mylar. In addition, she has worked in high shrinkage fibers to create wall sculptures of handmade paper and pounded Kozo fibers, as well as created anecdotal paper clay torsos and games.
Education
University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA Continuing Education
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art, Philadelphia, PA Continuing Education
New School, New York, NY Continuing Education
Wharton School of Business, Philadelphia, PA Continuing Education, Evening Marketing Program
New York University Graduate School of Film and Television, New York, NY MFA Program in Film Direction
Tyler School of Art, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA MFA Program in Printmaking
Tyler School of Art, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA BFA cum Laude
Wayne Art Center Juried Members Show, Wayne Art Center, Philadelphia, PA Great Frame Up Award
Large Format Juried Show, Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA 3rd Prize
First Presbyterian Festival of the Arts, First Presbyterian Church, Clarks Summit, PA Prize in Graphics
Cheltenham Center for the Arts, Cheltenham, PA Honorable Mention
Philadelphia Art Teacher's Annual, Philadelphia, PA Association Award in Prints
Stell Elkins Tyler Scholarship
PA Board of Education Scholarship
Collection
Commissions
A Journey to Greece, Hug-Verlag, AG, Zurich, Switzerland
Painting, William Freedman Gallery
Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, Director's Office
Affiliation
InLiquid Papermakers Guild Surface Design Association Friends of Dard Hunter (Papermakers) The Print Center The University of Pennsylvania Museum Philadelphia Museum of Art Artists Equity-Delaware Valley
Professional Experience
1996 - 2008 International Product Marketing Consulting and workshops in merchandising, marketing, & promoting craft Clients Include: University of Pennsylvania Museum Shop, Philadelphia, Pa University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA Crafts Center, Silver Spring, MD Nova Scotia Designer Crafts Council, Nova Scotia, Canada Cape Breton Center for Craft and Design, Nova Scotia, Canada ArtNet.Com, NYC, NY IMF/World Bank, Washington, D.C. Action For Enterprise, Mali, West Africa Aid to Artisan, Hartford, CT Fundacion Ecolombia, Medellin, Colombia Art & Artifact Catalog, Twinsburg, Ohio Canadian Government Dept. of Foreign Affairs, Washington, D.C. Made in Museum, Rome, Italy
Juries, Boards
Year of the American Craft Committee, American Crafts Council
Beauty Gallery, Newtown Square, PA Judge
Buyers Market of American Crafts Judge
North Dakota Tribal Show Judge
California Gift Show Booth Judge
New York Gift Show Booth Judge
First Nations Project Advisory Board
World Titanium Council Council Member
Teaching
Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA Mainline Art Center, Haverford, PA The American International School, Zurich, Kilchberg, Switzerland The American International School, London, United Kingdom Allen's Lane Art Center, Philadelphia, PA The Newark Museum, Newark, NJ Olney High School, Philadelphia, PA Bartram High School
