Judith Simonian

Interviews by Brainard Carey

A photo of the artist: Judith Simonian with Charles Yuen

Many of Simonian’s works in the exhibition at JJ MURPHY Gallery are still lifes, such as “Marysia’s Salon” (2024), which was inspired by a visit to a Polish beauty parlor in her East Village neighborhood. “Bottle Symphony in Red” (2023) recalls Giorgio Morandi. Whereas Morandi’s still lifes are a delicate arrangement of vases, jugs, bowls, urns, and bottles, painted in muted colors—whites, browns, and tans—set against a neutral background, Simonian bombards our senses through her use of high-intensity reds, pinks, blue-greens, grays, blacks, and yellow ochre.

In “Inside Outside” (2023), the artist similarly portrays a room as an expressionistic whirlwind of vivid colors. Simonian’s paintings deal with intervals, or the spaces between points. Simonian’s still lifes often open up an interior space to an exterior one. In “Marysia’s Salon,” a photograph tacked on the wall suggests the world outside. “Bobby Pins of Manhattan” (2023-24) provides a glimpse of the city skyline through the window, including the landmark Empire State Building. “Cat in the Lamp” (2024) depicts a black cat inside an illuminated yellow lampshade in front of a large window that overlooks water.

Simonian employs careful framing to create meaning. It is possible to view several of her landscape paintings as political allegories. In “Greener Pastures” (2025), the shimmering image of the Statue of Liberty appears to be a mirage, while green brushstrokes seem to hint at water on deck or maybe even a school of fish. “Resting on Her Side” (2024) depicts rocky terrain and the bleak spectacle of a capsized ship.

Judith Simonian has had solo exhibitions of her work at 1GAP, Brooklyn; Edward Thorp Gallery, New York City; and John Davis Gallery in Hudson, NY. Her work has been shown in numerous museums, including The New Museum, NYC; MoMA/PS1, NYC; Islip Museum, NY; Montclair Art Museum, NJ; Weatherspoon Art Museum, NC; San Francisco Museum of Art, CA; Santa Barbara Museum of Art, CA; Newport Harbor Art Museum, CA; and the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, WI. Simonian has been awarded many prestigious honors, including a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, an Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Foundation Individual Support Grant, and a National Endowment for the Arts Grant. She received her BA and MA degrees from California State University, Northridge. The artist lives and works in New York City.

Greener Pastures, 2025, acrylic on canvas, 24 x 32 inches

Marysia’s Salon, 2024, acrylic on canvas, 30 x 20 inches

Enter the Mountain Yellow, 2023, acrylic on canvas, 50 x 66 inches