Tammy Swarek, Conceptual Artist
Tammy Swarek is an award-winning and internationally published multidisciplinary artist focusing on photography, painting, and sculpture who lives in El Dorado, Arkansas. Her work is deeply emotional, and is often inspired by her own life experiences, as well as those of her son with autism, and her mother with Alzheimer’s. Swarek is most known for her work featuring adoptable dogs from her local animal shelter. Her series “Shelter Pets Project” became an international hit in 2016 and published across the globe. The following year Swarek was a top ten finalist in the annual Smithsonian photography competition.
A lifelong lover of photography, it wasn’t until 2010 when she lost her home in a mile-wide tornado, that she pursued her art fully. Her work has been featured by Vanity Fair Italia, Vogue Italia, LensCulture, Lenscratch, The Guardian, DailyMail, Good Morning America, ABC News, Yahoo News, Pop Sugar Celebrity, 516 Arts, Smithsonian, and more. You will also find Swarek’s work on many book covers.
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Tammy is represented by Arcangel Images, Art+Commerce, Fine Art America and 1x Gallery
As an artist, photography is my medium of choice. There’s a little bit of me in all of my work, including my portraits of people and animals. I find that when I am behind a camera, I am able to connect with the brokenness of us all.
I believe that everyone carries a sadness peculiar to themselves, that everyone is “broken”. We don’t see each other’s brokenness, because most of us have managed to put ourselves back together – with super glue or with tape and spit and a prayer. How well we’ve put ourselves back together doesn’t really matter; what matters is that we all are cracked, and we all carry pain.
Exhibitions
2025 South Arkansas Arts Center, El Dorado, AR, 'Father' Solo Exhibition *Details Coming Soon
2022 Las Laguna Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA., 'Human Faces and Figures' Group Exhibition
2022 Lenscratch, '2021 Favorite Photograph, Group Exhibition
2021 PhotoPlace Gallery, Middlebury, VT, 'Portrait' Group Exhibition
2021 Las Laguna Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA., "Icons" Group Exhibition
2021 PhotoPlace Gallery, Middlebury, VT, 'Essential Water' Group Exhibition
2021 H. Gallery, Ventura, CA., 'Art in the Time of Corona', International Group Exhibition
2021 Loosen Art Gallery, at Millepiani, Rome, Italy, 'The Dreamer', Group Exhibition
2021 Loosen Art Gallery, at Millepiani, Rome, Italy, 'Instability and Precariousness', Group Exhibition
2020 Dab Art Gallery, Los Angeles, CA., 'Art in the Time of Corona', Group Exhibition
2020 Space 204 Gallery Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN., 'Holding Patterns', Group Exhibition
2020 Las Laguna Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA., 'Photography 2020', Group Exhibition
2020 New Museum Los Gatos, Los Gatos, CA., 'Art in the Time of Corona', Group Exhibition
2020 Ground Floor Artists Gallery, Suprise, AZ., 'Frida Kahlo's World', Group Exhibition
2020 516 Arts Museum, Albuquerque, NM., 'The Resilience Project', Group Exhibition
2020 Las Laguna Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA., 'A Light in the Darkness', Group Exhibition
2017 South Arkansas Arts Center, El Dorado, Ar., 'Shelter Pets Project', Solo Exhibition
2016 Lenscratch, 'Animals Among Us', Group Exhibition
2015 Lenscratch, 'Favorite Photograph IV', Group Exhibition
2015 Lenscratch, 'Masks', Group exhibition
Awards
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2024 London International Creative Award, 2023 Winner, "Father" Series
2023 Prix de la Photographie, Paris PX3, Silver Winner. 'The Heirloom Dress'
2023 MIFA, Bronze for 'Heirloom Dress'
2022 London International Creative Competition, Official Selection for 'The Heirloom Dress'
2021 PhotoPlace Gallery, Director's Award for 'Letting Go'
2021 7th Fine Art Photography Awards, Nominated series "Photography Under Quarantine"
2021 14th Annual International Color Awards Winner, Honorable Mention in Still Life, 'Choices'
2020 Leica, Flower Photo Competition, Finalist and Award of Excellence
2020 Ground Floor Artists Gallery, Honorable Mention, 'Frida Kahlo, Love Letters'
2019 The Portrait Masters Associate Certification
2018 Arkansas Life “Best of” Award
2017 Leica, Reflections Contest Winner
2017 Leica, Award of Excellence
2017 Smithsonian, Award Finalist
2017 and 2018 The Portrait Masters, Multiple Silver and Bronze Awards
2016 IPA, Honorable Mention, 'Deepest Part of Me'
2016 Vogue Italia, Best Of PhotoVogue for series 'Forgotten' and 'The Artist'
2016 ViewBug, Maternity Photo Contest Winner
2015, 2016, 2017 National Geographic YourShot Editors Choice
2014 Photopaths, Grand Champion
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Publications
Flower Power Daily
Fraction Magazine
Lensculture
Pro Photographers Magazine
Vogue Italia / PhotoVogue
Vanity Fair Italia
Good Morning America
ABC News
Yahoo and AOL news
Arkansas Life Magazine
Dogster Magazine
PopSugar Celebrity
The Guardian
DailyMail UK
Refinery 29
Inside Edition
US Weekly
Paris Match
ET Today
MSN News
Cosmopolitan Brazil
TheArtBo
My Modern Met
Avax News
Blaze Press
The Girls Magazine
Many others around the world