About My Work

Artist Statement

My work employs painting, drawing, and digital mixed media to visualize geometries that subvert traditional painting canon.  These geometries emerge from mapping the theoretical spaces described by post-structuralism, geography, complexity, psychology, psychedelics, feminism, politics, and cyber and queer culture.

I work both on and off the wall, drawing attention to and confusing a viewer’s awareness of their own body’s movements within illusionistic, sculptural, and architectural spaces.  To achieve this, I design, sculpt, paint, and install substrates to activate unique surface qualities that emphasize the viewer’s physical relation to the work and enhance its overall illusion of movement.

Throughout my work, brightly colored Cartesian grids, fractals, concentric squares, and circular forms connect and contradict diametrically opposed perspectival planes to reveal a greater relativity beyond closed systems.  As a result, the viewer may experience recognition, confusion, order, and a chance to decipher space, yet be overwhelmed by flatness.

Ultimately, I intend to discover how these optical tensions can topologically bend painting to the point of ideological collapse and reform it into a more intersectional medium with multi-dimensional and cross-disciplinary potential.

CV

EDUCATION

2022 — present   Pursuing Master of Arts in Art Therapy and Counseling with a Psychedelic Studies certificate — Southwestern College — Santa Fe, NM

2020   Psychology Studies — Study.com — Accredited online college-level courses that include Developmental Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, and an elective psychology course (9 credits)

2013   Bachelors of Fine Arts in Painting and Drawing with a minor in Art History — Minneapolis College of Art and Design — Minneapolis, MN

2011   AICAD Mobility: The Burren College of Art — Ballyvaughan, Ireland — A study abroad program focusing on artistic development and Irish studies

2009   ARTIS Study Abroad Program — Florence, Italy — Studied Drawing and Renaissance Art History

General Studies, emphasis on Fine Art — Texas State University — San Marcos, TX

 

EXPERIENCE

2022   Front Desk Receptionist — Tierra Nueva Counseling Center — Santa Fe, NM

I assisted the Tierra Nueva Counseling Center as a front desk receptionist. Responsibilities included: opening the clinic, greeting clients, responding thoroughly and compassionately to in-person client needs, as well as emails and phone calls; coordinating task and client care details with practicum students, licensed therapists, supervisors, and the clinical director; processing client payments and health insurance cards, completing 30-minute phone interviews for client intake (which included mental health assessments such as suicidality), updating client information in the EMR Bear patient intake system, coordinating communication between staff using Microsoft Teams software, and keeping a clean and organized workspace, November 2022 — March 2023

2020   Legal Assistant — Michael Shulman Attorney at Law — San Marcos, TX

I assisted Attorney Michael Shulman in his private practice handling criminal defense cases in the Hays County criminal justice system. Responsibilities included: reviewing the state’s evidence and writing discovery outlines in criminal defense cases (including but not limited to capital murder), assisting in jail visits and advising clients, assisting counsel in court, coordinating with legal team to effectively represent clients through scheduling, preparing and filing motions, and communicating with the District Attorney, January 2020 — January 2021

2015   Gallery Artist — Camiba Gallery — Austin, TX

I am represented by Camiba Gallery, where I have been included in several group exhibitions, as well as produced three major solo exhibitions titled Zoë Shulman: Circuit Topology, Zoë Shulman: The Allegory of Good and Bad Government, and Zoë Shulman: Neuroplastic, 2015 — present

2014   Drawing I Teaching Assistant — Minneapolis College of Art and Design — Minneapolis, MN

I assisted the Fine Art Chair with teaching Drawing I during the 2014 Fall Semester.  Responsibilities included: assisting the instructor in teaching students technical skills, discussing content, opportunities, and options; becoming a sounding board for the students’ ideas; and offering feedback, September — December 2014

Gallery Assistant — Walker Art Center — Minneapolis, MN

As a Gallery Assistant at the Walker Art Center, my responsibilities included providing security for world-class artworks and excellent customer service by helping patrons navigate the gallery space and assisting with questions regarding artworks and museum events, January — December 2014

2013   Pre-College Summer Session Painting Teaching Assistant — Minneapolis College of Art and Design — Minneapolis, MN

As a PCSS Teaching Assistant, I assisted students ages 15-18 in the classroom and studio.  Specific responsibilities included: assisting the instructor in teaching students technical skills, discussing content, opportunities, and options; becoming a sounding board for the students’ ideas; and offering feedback, July 2013, July, August 2014

2012   Student Union Fine Art Representative — Minneapolis College of Art and Design — Minneapolis, MN

I worked with the Student Union to solve problems within the student body and allocate funds for community events, collaborated with the Fine Art Chair to create an online network for the Fine Arts community, helped organize Fine Art Town Hall Meetings and Fine Art Critiques, and represented the student body before  the MCAD Board of Trustees, January — December 2012

 

SKILLS

Fine art — Oil painting, water based media (acrylic, gouache, watercolor), formal and live figure drawing, Japanese craft (paper making, woodblock printing, bookbinding), intaglio, cyanotype, encaustic, performance, conceptual art

Workshop — Welding, woodworking (CNC router, trim router, band saw, table saw, Dremel tool, chop saw, and belt sander), operating a scissor lift

Office — Microsoft Office Suite (Teams, Word, Excel, PowerPoint), typing speed: 65 GWAM, cash register, ACT Database, promotion and networking including social media (Facebook, Instagram), EMR Bear (clinical patient intake system), Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, digital photography, printing, and lighting for professional artwork documentation

 

ARTIST RESIDENCIES

2016   Kleindorf Art — Strodehne, Germany

Vermont Studio Center — Johnson, VT

2015   The Banff Centre — Alberta, Canada

Starry Night Retreat — Truth or Consequences, NM

 

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

2024   Impressions En Plein Air — Van Der Plas Gallery — New York, NY (invitational exhibition)

2022   Zoë Shulman: Neuroplastic — Camiba Gallery — Austin, TX (solo exhibition)

2020   Structure — A. Smith Gallery — Johnson City, TX (juried)

2019   Best of the Show — Texas State University — Round Rock, TX (juried)

A Fresh Look: Selection of Women Artists in the MADI Collection — The Museum of Geometric and MADI Art — Dallas, TX (juried)

2018   Fall Exhibit: Shulman, Lamplugh, Hubbard, Allen, Davis — McCrory Timmerman Galleries — Taylor, TX (invitational exhibition)

The New Non — The Flux Factory — Long Island City, NY (invitational exhibition)

Zoë Shulman: The Allegory of Good and Bad Government — Camiba Gallery — Austin, TX (solo exhibition)

2017   Annual Red Dot Art Spree — Women & Their Work — Austin, TX (invitational exhibition) 

Biennial: Origins in Geometry — The Museum of Geometric and MADI Art — Dallas, TX (juried)

Art City Austin Fair — Palmer Events Center — Austin, TX (Camiba Art Gallery) 

Zoë Shulman: Circuit Topology — Camiba Gallery — Austin, TX (solo exhibition)

Nasty Women Exhibition — The Knockdown Center — New York, NY

2016   Quadratfuss Exhibition: Berlin Edition — NX2 Gallery — Berlin, Germany (juried)

2015   Open Studio Event — The Banff Centre — Alberta, Canada

2014   The Burren Annual, 20th Anniversary Alumni Exhibition — Burren College of Art — Ballyvaughan, Ireland (juried)

The 2014 Minnesota Biennial — Minnesota Museum of American Art — St. Paul, MN (juried)

About Space/Contemporary Abstraction — University of Wisconsin — River Falls, WI (invitational exhibition)

2013   Geometry in Nature — Silverwood Gallery — Minneapolis, MN (juried)

Unpredictable — Minneapolis College of Art and Design — Minneapolis, MN (juried)

 

PERMANENT COLLECTION

Circuit Topology II (artwork) — The Museum of Geometric and MADI Art — Dallas, TX

 

ARTIST TALKS, CRITIQUES, AND DISCUSSION PANELS

2023   Discussion Panel — Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy with Psilocybin — Healing and Transformation Conference — Southwestern College —

Santa Fe, NM

2022   Artist Talk — Zoë Shulman: Neuroplastic — Camiba Gallery — Austin, TX

2018   Artist Talk and Catalog Signing — Zoë Shulman: The Allegory of Good and Bad Government — Camiba Gallery — Austin, TX

2017   Artist Talk — Zoë Shulman: Circuit Topology — Camiba Gallery — Austin, TX

2014   Artist Talk and Undergraduate Critique with Betsy Byers and Karen Gustafson — About Space/Contemporary Abstraction —

University of Wisconsin — River Falls, WI

 

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

2022   Jenny Weinar — Art-Making as Psychedelic Integration and Trauma Resolution — Everyday Nonordinary the Podcast  February 25 — 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3kXkRFTX1CE0P2QDu0Yw2O

Wayne Alan Brenner — Sorcery and Special K: The Neuroplastic Visions of Zoë Shulman — The Austin Chronicle — February 11 — pg. 42 - 43

https://www.austinchronicle.com/arts/2022-02-11/sorcery-and-special-k-the-neuroplastic-visions-of-zoe-shulman/

Camiba Gallery — Zoë Shulman: Neuroplastic Artist Talk — February 7 — https://youtu.be/kuAvYd1C-_E

Kristen O'Brien — 8 Austin art exhibits that will tug at your heartstrings — Austin Culture Map — February 3 — 

https://austin.culturemap.com/news/arts/02-03-22-austin-art-exhibits-museums-february/#slide=0

Erin Keever — Neuroplastic abstraction: Zoë Shulman’s ‘ketagons’ — Sightlines Magazine — January 27 — 

https://sightlinesmag.org/neuroplastic-abstraction-zoe-shulmans-ketagons

Glasstire — Top Five: January 20, 2022 — January 20 — http://glasstire.com/2022/01/20/top-five-january-20-2022/ 

2020   A. Smith Gallery — exhibition catalog with photograph — May 26 — pg. 16

2019   The Museum of Geometric and MADI Art — exhibition catalog with photograph — April 26 — pg. 2

2018   Minneapolis College of Art and Design — alumni profile — August 21 — https://mcad.edu/alumni-profile/zoe-shulman

The Flux Factory — exhibition catalog with photograph — June 29 — pg. 5

Yes Ma’am Press — artist zine, Issue 12: The Dream Issue* — March 25 — pg. 22 - 23

(*Winner of the 2018 Broken Pencil Zine Award for Best Political Zine)

Wayne Alan Brenner — closing announcement with review statement — The Austin Chronicle — February 9 — pg. 30

Camiba Gallery — The Allegory of Good and Bad Government exhibition catalog — February 3

Arts + Culture Texas Magazine — exhibition announcement with photograph — February 1 — pg. 12

Jeanne Claire van Ryzin — Gallery Going: Zoë Shulman at Camiba Art — Sightlines Magazine — January 26 — 

https://sightlinesmag.org/gallery-going-zoe-shulman-at-camiba

Jeanne Claire van Ryzin — Our picks for PrintAustin 2018 — Sightlines Magazine — January 11 — https://sightlinesmag.org/our-picks-2018-printaustin

Print Austin — exhibition catalog with photograph — January 7 — pg. 1

Glasstire — exhibition announcement with photograph — January 4 —

http://glasstire.com/events/2018/01/04/zoe-shulman-the-allegory-of-good-and-bad-government/

2017   The Museum of Geometric and MADI Art — exhibition catalog with photograph — July 28 — pg. 1

The Austin Chronicle — exhibition announcement with photograph — February 17 — pg. 30

Glasstire — exhibition announcement with photograph — February 13 — http://glasstire.com/events/2017/02/13/zoe-shulman-circuit-topology/ 

John Salazar — 'Nasty Women' Host Art Exhibit, Planned Parenthood Fundraiser — Time Warner Cable News/Spectrum News — January 15 —

http://spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/san-antonio/news/2017/01/15/-nasty-women--host-art-exhibit--planned-parenthood-fundraiser

2015   Quinton Skinner — Ones to Watch — Minnesota Monthly Magazine — January 1 — pg. 56 - 60

2014   Marianne Combs — Weekend Arts Roundup: Pride, Biennial and Shakespeare — The Current on Minnesota Public Radio — June 26 —

https://www.thecurrent.org/feature/2014/06/26/weekend-arts-roundup-pride-biennial-and-shakespeare

 

GALLERY AFFILIATION

Camiba Gallery — Austin, TX

 

SCHOLARSHIPS AND GRANTS

2024   Black Elk Visionary Award Scholarship — Southwestern College

2023   Rudolf Steiner Award Scholarship — Southwestern College

2012   MCAD Painting/Drawing Merit Scholarship — Minneapolis College of Art and Design

2011   MCAD Painting/Drawing Merit Scholarship — Minneapolis College of Art and Design

2010   MCAD Distance Grant — Minneapolis College of Art and Design

MCAD Opportunity Grant — Minneapolis College of Art and Design

2009   MCAD Visual Scholarship — Minneapolis College of Art and Design