PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
I'm a gleaner and a collector. I search and gather both found materials and visual information from the cities I visit and incorporate them into my work...I find, recycle, reuse, reclaim and I make. Throughout my artistic career the urban landscape has been and continues to be a source of inspiration for me. This unending offering of found detritus, surface textures, color and architectural detail have all become part of my visual vocabulary. Through this process I have leaned to appreciate the inherent beauty found in the ordinary and the ephemeral. As a visual artist my interest extends beyond any single medium, driving me to experiment and explore various options in my photography, collage, mixed-media assemblage, kiln-fired glass and clay works and sometimes even discovering new techniques to incorporate into these mediums. I've enjoyed the challenge to push the inherent limitations for each of these mediums, allowing myself to move from medium to medium and bringing the information acquired from one into the next and then back again. I've received a BFA degree from the School of the Art Institute in Chicago and an MFA honors degree from Pratt Institute in New York City. I was fortunate to have studied with 3 gifted instructors: Roland Ginzel, Kenneth Josephson Robert Nickle. All were practicing artists and trained at the New Bauhaus at IIT in Chicago. This profound educational experience played a crucial role in my development as a professional artist and even after over 55 years, these instructors voices still resonate through my work. I'm currently a Professor Emeritus from School of the Arts, Virginia Commonwealth University, where I taught for 35 years. For the past 15 years, I also taught at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Studio School in Richmond, Virginia My career as a professional artist has continued for over half a century. Works have been exhibited in 28 solo exhibitions and in over 250 juried and invitational exhibitions both in the US and abroad and work is include in many public and private collections. I've also been awarded seven residencies to pursue my photographic work at the Cit� International des Arts in Paris, France and have also had a solo exhibition there of my photographic series titled, Unsung Views of Paris. I also created and produced 2 limited edition Artists Coloring Books, Volumes 1 & 2, (2014 & 2016). Each volume contained original artwork by 30 of the cites most admired artists. I'm honored to have also been invited to exhibit several projects for Micro Galleries that included festivals in: Jakarta, Indonesia; Cape Town, South Africa; Norwa, Australia; Kathmandu, Nepal; and Denpasar, Bali. Kat is a curator, urban disruptor and creator of public art interventions that focus on positive social change. She has trained in voice, theatre and performance-making for over 26 years studying theatre, classical singing and English literature in Australia, obtaining a Bachelor of Creative Arts; Bachelor of English Literature and her Master of Arts (Research) in Performance Studies. Kat has a strong interest in contemporary creation practices, their intersection with communities, and how they can influence positive change. Her research thesis focused on emerging, urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists and opportunities available for the development of a sustainable creative presence. She has recently returned from the prestigious The Arctic Circle Residency, and Al Gore's Climate Reality Leadership Corps program where she continued her research and activations on climate disruption art and the role of artists in this vital issue. Based in Asia, she is the founder and Artistic Director of the global arts initiative Micro Galleries, was a Director and Chair of the Board of Directors for Sydney alternative arts space The Red Rattler, is an Advisor for French-based, International organisation United Sketches, is mum to mini-disruptor Angus, was shortlisted for Sydney University Alumni awards and was named as one of Australia's 100 Women of Influence for 2015, for her work in the cultural sphere. Sarah is an urban artist who has been traveling the world and bringing her talent to light in many forms of discovery. Hosting a multitude of solo and group exhibitions across 4 continents in the past 15 years. Sarah identifies as an arse-kicking, colour consuming artistic hot mess. Her figure focused, crazy coloured work looks more put-together than she is!
