Colleen Itani (she/her) maintains an interdisciplinary practice that “explores domestic architecture through an abstracted lens.” She is inspired by everyday structures like row houses, semi-detached homes, and flats and states that, “the timelines of these sites situate themselves along histories of those who have lived within and around them. The architectural forms allow me to use inanimate structures as stand-ins for the body and human relations.” She reflects on spaces close to home in Philadelphia and also structures from her familial past in Beirut, Lebanon, “investigating my present location alongside my heritage.” Through an initial process of intuitive drawing by considering physical and emotional exchanges, Itani’s work “takes on a new form by involving printmaking and photography, resulting in work that plays with scale, temporality and multiplicity.” By abstracting environments, she encourages viewers to visit the world around them through a new lens.
Itani lives and works in Philadelphia, PA. She has exhibited at galleries across the U.S., including New York, California, Florida, and Georgia. She completed a residency at Vermont Studio Center in 2019 and is currently a member at Black Hound Clay Studio and in the Master Gardener program. Itani received her BFA in Studio Art and BA in International Studies from The University of Tampa and her MFA from Florida State University.
The Fall 2022 micro-residencies and exhibitions are sponsored by Big Picture Initiative. Big Picture Initiative is a 501c3 whose mission is to build a thriving & vibrant community for all by using arts and creativity as a driver for social change, economic development, and wellness. They do this by providing arts-based solutions, promoting and supporting artists and arts initiatives, and advancing arts education. Meal assistance for the artists was donated by Radish Kitchen, a “plant-based and vegan hub for the Heart of Illinois.” Radish Kitchen is dedicated to making “plant-based and vegan eating more available and accessible in the region.”
