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About

About

Tara Bystran-Pruski

Tara Bystran is an artist and entrepreneur whose current painted body of work, The Bandaged Place, is a meditation on the healing complexities of scar tissue.

The artist has studied philosophy, painting, and human development, and received their M.F.A. in Visual Arts from the Vermont College of Fine Arts, and is an Adjunct Professor of painting and advanced drawing at Daemen College.

They are a founding member and past President of non-profit Emerging Leaders in the Arts Buffalo (ELAB), which created City of Night, and served as Vice President to the Buffalo Society of Artists.

Tara owns Snowy Owl Arts & Teahouse, where they have run ArtLab, a free community arts group, for over 10 years.

They live in West Seneca with their wife, Sarah Bystran-Pruski.

Education

M.F.A. | Visual Arts, Vermont College of Fine Arts (2015)

M.A. | Human Development, George Washington University, summa cum laude (2008)

B.F.A. | Fine Arts, State University of New York at Buffalo, cum laude (2006)

B.A. | Philosophy, State University of New York at Buffalo, cum laude (2006)

Tara - Fracture Mirror

Organizations

eLab | Founding Member

ArtLab | Founding Member

Buffalo Society of Artists (BSA) | Associate Member (2011-Present), Vice President (2018-2020)

Burchfield Penney Art Center | Member

Creative Mornings Buffalo | Member, Presenter (2019)

Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School | Director, Buffalo, NY, Chapter (2012-2014)

Emerging Leaders in the Arts Buffalo (ELAB) | Founding Member, President (2010-2018)

Related Work Experience

2010 – 2017 | Director of Individualized Education, Buffalo Academy of Science (Buffalo, NY)

2011 – 2012 | Curator, Avant Building (Buffalo, NY)

2010 – 2012 | Instructor, 464 Gallery and Studio 464 (Buffalo, NY)

2006 – 2009 | Art & Special Education Teacher, Eastern Senior High School (Washington, DC)

2005 – 2006 | Construction Worker and Mason, Woodcrafter Construction (Buffalo, NY)

Press

ART

Irish Central | September 26, 2024

WGRZ | September 25, 2024

The Buffalo News | December 20, 2023

Buffalo Rising | December 18, 2023

The Burchfield Penney Art Center | June 18, 2023

Niagara Frontier Publications | January 25, 2023

ASI WNY Grant Press Release | January 23, 2023

Shoutout HTX | January 6, 2022

WGRZ | June 7, 2021

Rise Collaborative | May 7, 2021

LISC Western New York | May 7, 2021

Just Buffalo Literary Center | 2021

Niagara Gazette | July 22, 2020

ASI WNY Mural Announcement | March 23, 2020

ArtVoice | August 31, 2011

Rochester City Newspaper | October 1, 2019

The Buffalo News | September 25, 2019

Aerial Dance Buffalo | September 7, 2019

ArtVoice | May 17, 2016

The Buffalo News | July 15, 2015

Step Out Buffalo | April 22, 2015

Buffalo Spree | February 3, 2015

Daily Public | January 14, 2015

WBLK | January 13, 2015

The Buffalo News | December 31, 2014

Buffalo Rising | December 8, 2014

Buffalo Spree | June 17, 2014

The Buffalo News | February 22, 2014

Buffalo Rising | February 14, 2014

The Buffalo News | January 2, 2014

Orchard Park Bee | January 2, 2014

Buffalo Rising | October 24, 2013

Buffalo Rising | August 16, 2013

Buffalo Rising | March, 2013

The Buffalo News | April 8, 2013

The Buffalo News | April 4, 2013

The Buffalo News | September 9, 2012

Snowy Owl Tea

Buffalo Place | March 20, 2021

The Buffalo News | January 28, 2021

The Buffalo News | June 23, 2020

Green Living Gurus | December 14, 2020

Spectrum News 1 | June 10, 2020

Kombucha Brewers | August 29, 2018

Qween City | September 7, 2017

Step Out Buffalo | July 20, 2016

The Barrel Factory

Step Out Buffalo | March 2, 2023

WKBW, AM Buffalo | February 8, 2023

WKBW | January 25, 2023

Step Out Buffalo | January 18, 2023

Buffalo Rising | November 7, 2022

Buffalo News | March 7, 2018

Upstart NY | November 16, 2018

BizJournals | December 9, 2015

Awards, Grants, & Residencies

2023 | Art Services Inc., New York State Council on the Arts | Grant Recipient, “The Bandaged Place”

2011 | The National Arts Program | Honorable Mention

2008 | George Washington University | DC Teaching Fellow

2006 | Morrison Arts Award | Recipient

Selected Events, Collaborations, & Exhibitions

December 2023 | “Anthem: A Solstice Art Portal“, Art Services Inc., New York State Council on the Arts | Solo Exhibition

September 2023 | Exquisite Corpse, Revolution Gallery | Featured Artist

September 2023 | Drawing Rally, Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center | Featured Artist

July 2023 | 49th Annual Members Exhibition, Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center | Featured Artist

July 2023 | “Meeting Resistance: Adaptations for Artistic Perseverance”, Chautauqua Institution | Featured Presenter

February 2023 | Exquisite Corpse, Revolution Gallery | Featured Artist

2022 – Present | Tarot Drink ‘n’ Draw, The Merry Shelley | Featured Artist

2022 | “Meeting Resistance: Adaptations for Artistic Perseverance”, Creative Professionals Exchange (CPX) | Featured Presenter

2021 – Present | Queen City Traveling Market | Co-Founder

2020 | “The Musk Deer”, 124th Catalouge Exhibition, Buffalo Society of Artists | Featured Artist

2016 – 2020 | Burton & Sas | Artistic Collaboration

2019 | “This is What Awesome Means“, Creative Mornings Buffalo | Featured Presenter

2018 – 2019 | Music is Art Festival | Featured Artist

2017 | Nikola Tesla Fest: Electric Circus | Co-Founder 

2015 | “The Alchemy of Dreams“, HiTemp Fabrication | Solo Exhibition

2015 | “Waldeninsamkeit“, Glow Gallery | Solo Exhibition

2014 | Artists & Models Affair 25: True Defective | Featured Artist

2014 | le Cirque de la Lune, an ELAB Art Circus | Featured Artist, Organizer

2013 – 2016 | Echo Art Fair | Featured Artist

2013 | “Coming Soon“, Artspace Gallery | Solo Exhibition

2013 | Trimania, Buffalo Arts Studio | Featured Artist

2013 | ELABaret | Featured Artist, Organizer

2012 – 2013 | City of Night | Featured Artist, Co-Founder, President

2012 | “Lovely, Dark, and Deep”, 464 Gallery | Solo Exhibition

2012 | Creative Conversation | Featured Artist, Organizer

2012 | Artists and Models, Pierce Arrow Building | Featured Artist

2012 | Midsummer Night’s Draw, Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center | Featured Artist

2012 | Living Art, Main St. Studios | Featured Artist

2011 | “Sirens”, 464 Gallery | Solo Exhibition

2011 | Live Mural Painting, Echo Art Fair | Featured Artist

2011 | Debase, Blink Gallery | Featured Artist

2010 | Ripe, Blink Gallery | Featured Artist

2010 | “Crown of Stars”, 464 Gallery | Solo Exhibition

2009 | “Urban Bodhisattvas”, Busboys and Poets | Solo Exhibition

Portfolio

Testimonials