Maryam SAMAAN
Puppeteer

Maryam received a creative grant in partnership with the Atelier des Artistes en Exil.

What is your artistic background ?
I am multidisciplinary, a freelance stage designer and puppeteer. I did part of my studies in Damascus, Syria, then in Rennes and Paris. I developed my artistic practice in the art of puppetry in Beirut (Chatila camp) in Lebanon. I am also an animator for several artistic forms (theater, puppets, creation of objects and drawings) and for workshops for art sensitization.

How do you see your profession today ?
For me, art is a way to say things differently. The theater is a meeting space, and puppetry is an open door which allows us to speak our words. To express, to leave traces in our history and to be part of the writing of our common history. I am where I am because I would not know how to be elsewhere, my profession allows me to be myself. Even if it seems difficult and never enough, it is also what constitutes the charm of this profession.

How do you see yourself in 5 years ? In 10 years ?
After five or 10 years, I would like to be where I am today, and I imagine that I will have the same energy to continue creating as I have now. Creating is a way to understand life and also a way to build relationships. Through live art, we create bridges to the impossible.

Interview conducted in 2021
Photography credit: Julia Grandperret