My art is a visual diary. Layering contradictory emotional states and observations into a cohesive art piece is a way for me to understand my experiences and identities that often feel contradictory. The works are sometimes about reconciling my identities as a queer or Palestinian-American. Other times, it is to investigate contrasts in time, season, or night/day that I observe as an insomniac. Like a quilter, I am interested in assembling visual narratives out of these fragmented or contradictory parts. The unlikely associations help me make an experience whole. The works explore themes of unity and contrast both literally, through the layering of traditional media and found materials, and figuratively, through the combining of the real and the mythical. Through the process of mixing media, I begin to understand the layers within myself, and trade stereotypes for depth and wonder.
BIOGRAPHY
Adam Chamy is a multidisciplinary creative based in Washington, DC who creates mixed media paintings, writes short stories, and designs adaptive reuse architecture and urban spaces. Chamy has exhibited at venues including the United Nations East Gallery, Washington National Airport, al-Quds Gallery, and numerous other art spaces nationally and internationally. His art and writing has won accolades including as awardee of the 2023 Half-Light Press Short Story prize for the magical realism fable “The Two Halves House”. His solo art show “Of Refuge, Of Home” was featured by the Washington Post’s The Express and NPR’s WAMU Arts Desk. As an architect, he has worked on nationally renowned teams including as a key design member for the award winning adaptive reuse of the St. Elizabeth’s mental health hospital into affordable housing at Cunningham Quill Architects.
SELECT EXHIBITION LIST
2024 Exhibitor, From the Earth to the Sky, Gallery Y, Washington, DC
2024 Exhibitor, Queer Art Showcase, Playhaus, Washington, DC
2024 Exhibitor, Artomatic, Washington, DC - With postiive review by artist and art critic F. Lennox Campello.
2024 Exhibitor, Watermelon Seeds: Palestinian and Arab-AMerican Art, The Den at Politics and Prose, Washington, DC
2024,Illustrator, “DC State of Mind” The Critical Planning Journal, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
2023 Illustrator,Sentience Literary Journal, Los Angeles, CA
2023 Exhibitor, Waves of Joy, Gallery Y, Washington, DC
2022 Exhibitor, Juried Show, Hill Center Regional Juried Exhibition, Washington, DC
2022 Author and Illustrator, “The Cactus House”, Sentience Literary Journal, Los Angeles, CA
2021 Exhibitor, Pride, Portico Gallery, Brentwood, MD
2020 Exhibitor, Art is not Optional, al-Quds Gallery, Washington, DC
2019 Illustrator & Author, TinyQueerZine
2018 Exhibitor, SuperFine! Art Fair, Washington, DC
2018 Illustrator, Two Hawks Quarterly, Antioch University, Culver City, California
2017 Exhibitor, ThinkSmall, Art Space, Richmond, Virginia
2017 Finalist ArtBank, Juried Contest for Public Art with the District of Columbia , Washington, DC.
2017 Exhibitor, Hill Center Regional Juried Exhibition Washington, DC
2017 Exhibitor, “Look Closer” Georgetown Visitation, Washington, DC
2017 Exhibitor, Artomatic, Crystal City, Virginia
2016 Exhibitor, Forbidden Colors, al-Quds Gallery, Washington, DC
2015 Exhibitor, And We Have Countries, al-Quds Gallery, Washington, DC
2013 Exhibitor, League of Arab States, Ronald Reagan Atrium Gallery, Washington, DC
2012 Exhibitor, “The Art of Rebellion”, Museo del Brigantaggio, Itri, Italy
2012 Exhibitor, Palestine: Memories, Dreams, Perseverance, Northeast Gallery, United Nations, New York, NY
2012 Cover Illustrator and Designer for Novel: The Lost Tribes of the Alleghenies by Alan Margolis
2011 Exhibitor, Juried, Reagan National Airport - “Artomatic Takes Flight”- Arlington, VA
2011 Solo Show, “Of Refuge, Of Home” al-Quds Gallery, Washington, DC
2011 Exhibitor, “Arab-American Art Exhibition”–National Arab-American Professionals Network-DC
2011 Illustrator & Designer “Washington” Numbers Alive! Books for Young Travelers” by Rebecca Klemm
2011 Exhibitor, “Art” by Adam Chamy & Jessica Shull, Flying Fish, Washington, DC
2009 Exhibitor, “Just Art” GaleriaZero, Barcelona, Spain
2009 Exhibitor, “My Space on 5th”, Touchstone Gallery, Washington DC
2005 Juried Exhibitor, “Young Masters under 18” - Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX
EDUCATION
2016 Master of Architecture / Master of Community Planning University of Maryland, College Park, MD
2009 BA George Washington University , Washington, DC
SELECT PUBLICATION + MEDIA
Half Light Press
Sentience Literary
Two Hawks Quarterly
Al-Hurrah News
Washington Post's The Express
The Washington Blade
The Dallas Morning News
The Fort Worth Star Telegram