With a new generation of those interested in the arts on the rise, I find myself thinking about two separate groups of art lovers, especially in the Philadelphia area: those who are familiar with the work of Sam Maitin and those who aren't. Sam does not show in any of the local galleries in Old City, Philadelphia, nor is he represented by any dealers. You will not see advertisements of his works in any of the leading art journals or magazines, and yet, Sam has not only been able to succeed as a working artist for more than 40 years, but he is represented in most major museums around the world. Sam is one of those artists who once you become familiar with his imagery, you start to realize that his work is all around us -- from large wall murals at Children's Hospital of Pennsylvania and the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania; to cookbooks for the Philadelphia Orchestra, and unique collages and wonderful prints found in private collections in the Philadelphia area. Most major collectors in the Philadelphia area not only have a few pieces of his but are also on a first name basis with him. It is quite ironic that with so many people knowing Sam, that the only way one can get to look at any of his new work is to actually go to Sam's already overwhelmingly full studio and see for one's self what can be described as hidden treasures.

I had the chance to sit down and discuss some specific things with Sam about his art in his studio in Center City Philadelphia on the morning of November 14, 1999.

C: What type of things have you been working on lately?

S: I've been making several smaller collages but I've been revising my color to be softer and more muted with higher values. I've been using colors I never liked before. You can't keep doing the same thing. I am beginning to bore myself with the some things. For me, it always has to change. Art is like a living thing. It is liquid.

C: What kind of work would you like to be doing if you suddenly had unlimited resources?

S: I would like to do several large woodcuts. If nothing else but to see what else I could get out of the wood. I would do that and a large block of paintings. I think that they may turn out to look like my collages but of course I wouldn't want them to. I've got to get back to painting. I was also maybe thinking of some sculptural floor pieces.

C: It seems that over the last decade, you have really made a shift from printmaking to collage. Do you see this as an evolution or was there something that made you change?

S: Yes, this was definitely an evolution. In 1971 I had a retrospective at the Fleisher Art Memorial and I remember thinking of terminalness. I remember looking at the wall of prints borrowed from Ding McNulty (former chief curator for the Philadelphia Museum of Art) and I realized that I always layered things in my works (such is the process of printmaking). I guess I was somehow looking for a quicker way and I adopted the technique of chopping paper the way one might etch with a needle but this of course was much faster. It was really the changing of the tool that made it much quicker. I'm always looking for a quicker way to create my images.

C: Do you find yourself drawn more to the aesthetic quality of your work or the meaning or ideas that they represent?

S: It is definitely the aesthetic that intrigues me. The real business of art to me is to play with form, shape and color. I don't care what the story is. I do think that an audience wants a narration but once I know what the object is I get bored with it. The moment I have decided what I want, I forget it. It is the play of color and form that takes over. I find that it is this joy of just putting color, texture and shape together in an experimental way that is what I am truly interested in. This is perhaps either due to my training or my own human nature.

C: Your work often reflects very botanical themes but has become very abstract. Is this any kind of reflection on Cezanne?

S: I wouldn't be surprised. The first time I saw Cezanne I didn't understand it. Then over time I came to understand. What intrigued me most was his use of color. Cezanne would paint a shadow in green on a red apple and to me, that was the idea and power of complimentary color. That was really intriguing.

C: Finally, are there any artists who have always had an influence in your work?

S: Sure, there's the standard list like Matisse, Miro, Chagall, and Ezio Martinelli (a teacher of mine). Primarily those artists who have pushed color to its limits.

A short list of the collections that Sam Maitin's work is in can be viewed at www.picturemaker.com/MaitinLimited.htm

Interview has been edited.