Today we would like to celebrate printmaker Sam Middleton, born on this day! Sam Middleton (New York, NY; 1927 - Schagen, NL; 2015) was a mixed media artist from Harlem, New York. Middleton was a U.S. Merchant Marine and traveled all over the world during his service. Upon his return to New York in the 1950’s, the artist settled in with the artistic scenes of the East Village and Lower East Side. By 1955, Middleton followed suit of other fellow Black artists and traveled the globe for inspiration. He lived in Sweden and Mexico, for a time and eventually settled in the Netherlands, where he was accepted into a larger group of Black American ex-pat artists living in Europe. Growing up in Harlem, Middleton spent a lot of time at the Savoy Club and developed an appreciation for jazz which had a profound effect on how he created his work. His collages and abstract expressionist pieces use colors, shapes, and lines akin to musical harmonies and compositions. Middleton’s work is in many permanent collections including that of the Whitney Museum in New York, his work was also shown at the Museum's inaugural exhibition for their new building at the High Line (2015). These two prints above are available for purchase: 1: “Untitled”, 1974. Screenprint, Edition 48 of 60. 20 x 26 in. 2. “Untitled”, 1974. Screenprint, Edition 30 of 60. 20 x 26 in. #SamMiddleton #Printmaking #AbstractExpressionism #Abstract #Harlem #ExPat #Jazz #SavoyClub #PrimaryColors #Schagen #WhitneyMuseum #HighLine https://www.instagram.com/p/CNK88tSFZs_/?igshid=1cxn72ap5uu2e
