“I really enjoy folk art, myths, and cautionary tales. I am a glutton for those stories! In them, they explore the meaning of regret, loss, and consequences. In terms of my work, I touch on the same themes, illustrating my own cautionary tales, at the very least referencing a feeling.”
Date of Birth:
September 23, 1985
Married, partner, single:
I am single
Siblings?
An amazing younger sister
Do you have any pets?
None
Can you describe your typical day?
It really depends on the day. Everyday involves me waking up ridiculously early, although during the week I have a 9AM-5PM job that is not art related. Before work I typically spend an hour with art, and during my work day update Brown Paper Bag (shhh! Don’t tell my boss!) and complete any computer-related art tasks. After work, I try and spend most of my evenings making art. The weekends I try not to plan too much. I run errands, spend time at my art desk. Every Sunday I plan out Brown Paper Bag for the week/catch up on emails. Typing this all out sounds ridiculously dull. I do have fun and have friends, I promise!
Where are you from originally? Where did you grow up? Was it awesome there?
I am originally from Kansas City, Missouri and grew up there as well. I lived in the same house until I was 18. My parents still live there, although my old bedroom is not my room anymore. I don’t know if I’d call Kansas City “awesome”, as I grew up in the suburbs outside of city, and unfortunately did not interact with the downtown very much. I think that I would have enjoyed the city more had I done that. I will say, however, that there are some really great stores that I have only found in Kansas City. The vastness of the scenery is nice. My grandmother owns a farm in Kansas where my dad used to chop firewood when I was younger. My brother and I would explore the land while he was doing that, scaring cows and playing in the woods. I would say THAT was awesome.
Did you grow up creating art? When did you know that art was your calling?
I have always done something art related for as long as I can remember. I was really fortunate to have parents that encouraged and supported my endeavors throughout my youth (and still do!), so I had the opportunity to take a ton of art classes, attend a pre-college program, etc. I think that I never really had a moment where I thought art was my calling – it’s always been such a part of my life that I could never imagine it NOT my life.
What brought you to Baltimore, MD? Do you plan on staying?
Art school (Maryland Institute College of Art) brought me to Baltimore. I hated it the first year I lived here, which I think is common… but, they don’t call it “Charm City” for nothing. If I had to stay in Baltimore forever, I would be very okay with that – it’s really great in the sense that it’s still a developing city, and if you want to make a difference, get connected, start something new, you really have that opportunity. Nothing here is overly-established. I will plan on staying until I have to leave.
I would recommend a viewing of “This Filthy World” with John Waters. That can capture some of the ridiculousness that Baltimore has to offer.
Why did you decide to pursue an MFA? What do you hope to gain from that experience?
I’ve always enjoyed school, especially my college years. I was able to work with some really inspiring people who helped shape who I am and what my art is today. After graduation, I felt like I wasn’t done with that experience. I hope (all of this assuming I get accepted into graduate school) that I will enter an MFA program with a bit more focus and direction than undergrad. My ideas are better this time around, and I want to push my work and Brown Paper Bag further than I could ever do on my own.
You’re work is really detailed and seems like it would take an eternity to finish. Can you talk about how you begin a piece? How long does it usually take to finish?
I try to plan as much as possible for a piece, especially when I know it’s going to involve sewing. I start with a concept (maybe a word or feeling), and then delve into the sketching process – a bit of writing, visual research, and a LOT of bad thumbnails sketches. Once I have something substantial, I figure out what is going to be sewn, and what kind of colors/paper I’m going to use. I will paint paper if I don’t have a specific color, and look through my collection of thread to select what will be used. From there, I start to build! I lay down paper pieces first, then sew around them, since it’s much harder the other way around. As I’m working, I often will change bits and pieces from my original concept, and I try not to get married to what I’m working on – be open to scrapping things if they just aren’t working. Despite how tedious it all looks (and it IS tedious, believe me), I have become pretty quick at sewing. It will take me anywhere from 10 hours to 25 hours to complete something – it’s hard to know for sure since I don’t sit down in one day and finish something.
Are you exploring any themes in your work?
I really enjoy folk art, myths, and cautionary tales. I am a glutton for those stories! In them, they explore the meaning of regret, loss, and consequences. In terms of my work, I touch on the same themes, illustrating my own cautionary tales, at the very least referencing a feeling.
Pattern is also prevalent in my work, which ties into the idea of folk tales, and any stories that are handed down. I look at pattern as a way to visually express a collective symbol that is meaningful to a large number of people. Pattern adorns everyday objects, and is a simple way communicate on a large scale. Through my use of it, especially embroidered, I hope to conjure the idea and feeling of something that might be considered “folk”, or “kitschy”, to tie into handed-down history.
What do you do to make that cash money? How much time does this leave you to do art?
I mentioned I have a 9AM-5PM job… it’s a typical office job with administrative tasks. It’s a very small business though, which is nice – I have a lot of freedom. My work is very portable, so I am often sewing a lot during my lunch break. I also freelance illustration and design, but stopped pursuing anything to work exclusively on graduate applications.
I don’t require that much sleep, so on a good day I am able to work between 4 and 5 hours on art, more on the weekends. I figure that I wouldn’t be that much more productive on any given day, anyways.
You’re more in-tune with the art “system” than most of the artists in WAFA. You’ve done residencies, graduated from an art school, and are now gearing up to attend an MFA graduate program. What is it like navigating that side of the art world? Does it add to your work? Is it distracting? Beneficial? Confusing? Comforting?
Ha, am I? I feel like I have so much to learn and am drinking up the collected WAFA knowledge constantly. I think my education has added tremendously to my work. MICA has a pretty intense program, and the environment of an art school is unlike anything I had ever experienced. It was beneficial for me – school broke me down, demanded I grow a thick skin, question everything, and teach me that there is no “right way” to have an art career – it’s all how you make it for yourself. That, in a sense is comforting – to feel that I am equipped with all of the tools to succeed and the knowledge of how to do. It’s also shows how much work is put into being successful, whatever that means.
Where do you want to take your work?
I would ultimately like to push the boundaries of working with thread. I started working with cut paper and collage at MICA, and I’m trying to figure out if I am going to continue to stray from that, and if so, how far. My parents bought me a couple of books on quilting that I am excited to read once I am done applying for grad school. I am going to play around and see where that takes me and see how it integrates into my work.
How did your art blog, Brown Paper Bag, come about? It seems to be very successful in its scope and fan-base. What drives you to continue with it?
I had been noodling around with my personal blog (titled Marshmellow Kisses – don’t ask) for about a year – posting in that nearly everyday. One day a week on Marshmellow Kisses was dedicated to featuring an artist, and soon that became my favorite to write! I had started reading other blogs like Booooooom! and My Love For You is a Stampede of Horses, and thought, “I can do that too!” So, I did. It also helped that I love HTML/CSS, so I was excited to play around with WordPress.
There are definitely days I want to post more than others. But, with every day that I can’t find the right words, there are other days that I am super excited to talk about an artist and their work. Those are the days that make it worth it. I’ve met some amazing people through Brown Paper Bag – people that I feel really “get me”, whom I probably would not have met otherwise. The possibilities are what drive me to continue.
How have you felt combining your work / art making technique with other people’s work in WAFA?
I’m really excited to see more of the possibilities. It’s taken a little bit of thinking about both mine and of WAFA processes. I want to combine more sewing, and I am still figuring out how that can interact with the work of other members. I think it can add a nice juxtaposition to the photography already present in the collective. With thread, it can reference something less technical, more natural, and also be a substitution for pen or pencil.
What else are you up to, besides art makin and art bloggin?
The other things that seem to take over my life are running and baking. Over the past year I’ve gotten back into long distance running, and I am pretty anal about training schedules and races. I’m running a few half marathons, a triathlon, and a marathon in 2011. To augment my fitness, I bake a lot of sweet things with a ton of butter in them. Heavy cream is good too. My dream is to make mini nutella and peanut butter sandwiches, coat them in pancake batter, then deep fry them. Then garnish with ice cream. Then go into a diabetic coma.
You can see more of Sara’s work here and here
