Artist Dina Samaha: Bringing Art Home

When conceptualizing a new home, what gets hanged on the walls often gets lost in the shuffle. Ideally, however, art should be an integral part of the process of creating a space. We caught up with artist Dina Samaha, who is a regular collaborator with Eklego Design and other big names in the capital, to learn more about the importance of art, what inspires her, and what trends we should keep our eye out for this spring.

Tell us about your latest exhibition, Inner Souls.

Inner Souls is a group of paintings reflecting a journey into the human soul—the very essence of life (the pure soul, the spiritual and the inspirational). It is a flow of “inner” emotions expressed on canvas through brush strokes and texture. In this exhibition, viewers are inspired to visualize art in their own homes along with furniture pieces, where art is in a part of a space rather than something to look at on big white walls. I really enjoyed collaborating with Eklego Design as it relates a lot to my artwork concept of “art to match your space”. I worked on their furniture display in the past, so creating the final touches within the exhibition was a lot of fun for me. Working within their Zamalek showroom and with their furniture, felt like I was working with one of my own Artistri interiors.

How do you see the relationship between interior design and art?

Art to interior is like jewellery to women—it makes a statement and accentuates her beauty. More often in interior design we see wall art is always dealt with last, after the furniture has been fully arranged. However, to me adding art to your space is the most crucial element in home decor and should be thought of in early design stages. Having the right art piece in your home creates balance to your space and keeps the first impression to your visitors. It provides harmony within the client’s space’s theme or can add colour in a muted scheme. Every new project is like a blank canvas to me—I get the opportunity to transform each and every room into a space filled with personality, one that the client would enjoy seeing everyday. Art is like the magic piece that brings your space together.

What are your biggest inspirations?

There are so many things that inspire me. It is difficult to pin down just one inspiration, as influences for me are countless. Everything around me inspires me—my mood, my emotions, my travels, nature and most importantly the home design I am creating the art for. Some days I just wake up with an idea in mind and translate on canvas and other days ideas just happen while am painting. I always take photos of things I like to open doors for creativity or if I have my sketchbook in hand I sketch down fresh ideas.

What is the most exciting new trend in art and design?

Well, what’s so exciting nowadays is that there isn’t just one or two trends that people are following. The whole interior design concept is becoming more bold and daring with pattern and colour. People are no more afraid to introduce colour to their space and make their homes more personal. We all know Egyptians like to start with neutral earthy tones in their furniture and then go bold with oversized artwork with pops of colour, striking accents or a statement wallpaper or wall paint. Today, I feel like clients would like their homes to reflect their individual tastes and interests rather than a “one style suits all” approach. Being an interior designer and artist, makes me want to experience different styles and enjoy the journey until the very end. I love to see how the whole picture comes up together- design along with décor- and how the whole room atmosphere has changed dramatically through every stage. My clients are also starting to connect so much to nature by bringing the outdoors indoors and having the maximum amount of sunlight in their home. Indoor plants and potted succulents are becoming a must-have for decoration and an easy way to bring natural appeal to your space. “Greenery” (Pantone colour of the year) is the biggest proof to this—it brings freshness and spring to your home.

What are you working on next?

I am working on collaborations with interior designers so I have several pieces in progress. Working with other interior designers is definitely the highlight of my business. They totally make this journey worth it and more challenging. After all, it’s very satisfying to see your own work in a beautifully designed context. Am looking forward to experimenting new techniques and new media and create art that perfectly meshes with clients existing space. I am also launching a website later this year, where clients can order their bespoke handmade paintings directly either from my collection or they can commissioned a piece.