Q&A with the artist, Sara
Get to know me as I answer questions about my personal style and studying the German language
How long have you been an artist?
I’ve been a creative for a long time. I started earning a living from graphic design my first year of college, which was 2010. But honestly, I grew up being creative. For instance, I made my own album when I was 10 or 11 (including the butterfly & rainbow album art), made home “movies” with neighborhood friends, sang in the youth group band, was in dance, and made my own art to decorate my dorm in college (which - no surprise - was the Eiffel Tower).
What defines your artistic style?
My art style is loose, gestural, and vintage-inspired. Graphic design really brought out the perfectionist in me, so painting in a way that doesn’t have to exact and photorealistic is actually quite therapeutic. Creating with my hands instead of on a computer screen has allowed me to explore different styles and my favorite is when you can see my art process when you look at a sketch. If you look closely, you can see how I had to discover the angles of a building or window and I think it’s beautiful and pretty metaphorical. We as humans are offered second, third, fourth, etc. chances in life and so I get that too as I create.
How would you describe your taste in home decor & interior design?
The first word that comes to my mind is old world but I also love the juxtaposition between old world and vintage pieces with sleek, modern ones. So that also makes me believe I’m eclectic too. In college I lived in some beautiful homes with 8 roommates in the Heritage Hill neighborhood in Grand Rapids, Michigan (think Jean Stoffer - I was only a block away from her current Madison House). The character, history, and details in those homes really started my love for old charm. My home now was built in like 1948 and it has these beautiful arches and ceiling details that I love and would never want to get rid of!
In terms of decor, I love vintage artwork and especially vintage posters which most likely stemmed from my design history class in college. When I was traveling Europe, one of my favorite souveniers were those little postcards with vintage posters on them because they were all that I could safely fit in my hiking backpack. Now they decorate my son’s nursery. I absolutely love thrifting and I’m so proud and sentimental with my thrift finds. The great thing about them is that they are so unique and can show off my personality more than things being sold in regular retail stores.
What led you to study German?
I believe it was a mix of God’s direction and me wanting to be different. In 6th grade, the only language offered was German but then I went to another school in 7th and 8th grade and learned Spanish then. In high school though, several languages were offered including German. I thought it was neat to try it again and I just loved it! I took it every year in high school and in my senior year, I took the intermediate courses at the community college. Taking those community college courses made it easy for me to pick up German once I transferred from Indiana Wesleyan University to Grand Valley State University. You can read the whole story of how I quit art school, but essentially I felt God’s voice telling me to switch my major to German once I found out that they have the fastest growing atheist population in the world. Once I learned that, it all clicked for me. It seemed like my desire for learning German was all for a purpose, so when I lived in Germany I was able to do community-based work like teach English classes in an underserved part of the city, serve with a local youth group, and do outreach in a red light district in Hamburg.
Why do you gravitate towards European scenes?
I gravitate towards European scenes because I love how the cities and shorelines all look so full of history. The architecture of course is an art form in itself and I feel like there’s nothing comparable here in America. It may also be because a lot of the vintage art that inspires me were European scenes so focusing on Europe feels right. I would love to take my family back to Europe to see old friends and show them the beautiful places over there.
What keeps you motivated?
I would say my faith in God, the desire to help provide for my family, and the fact that God has made me a bit of a dreamer. I love being able to express my creativity and create art that’s full of peace, stillness, and beauty. Something I’m very proud of is being able to offer art at a variety of price points so that anyone can enjoy my work, even if it’s just to decorate their dorm or something.
Where do you get your inspiration?
I get my inspiration through vintage art, typically late 1800 pieces, and through my photos from traveling Europe when I lived in Germany. The vintage art really inspires my color palette and my mark making. I love to make art that has that effortless feeling like some of the vintage pieces I love. I often will use my photos to use as a reference for my paintings or drawings and it’s a beautiful way to relive those memories.
Tell us about your at home studio.
We recently made over a room in our basement to be my home studio and it’s a place filled with art, spare frames, textures, patterns, and dried florals. I also use it to store decor I’m not using and of course my art supplies and gear. When I’m in the studio working, I love to turn on my worship music playlist and sing while I paint. I believe that peace that I feel while singing translates into my art. It’s just another way for me to relax and enjoy mark making.
