Art Logs
9.12.25
I’m not a blogger. But the option is available and since I quit Instagram, I thought I could use this as a log and if someone cared enough, it’s here for them.
2025 has been a nightmare in my opinion, but that falls outside of my art and for now I’m not going to speak on it. I started sewing clothes in early spring and probably have half a closet worth of clothes. Do you ever have those moments where your brain goes ‘brrrrr’ and you hyperfocus on something? That was sewing for me. In a way, it helped me cope with the insanity that is outside.
I didn’t paint for 7 months of 2025, which is a wild difference compared to 2023-24 as I think I made about 20-ish paintings or more. I have a few coming out this year fortunately, but it’s drastically less. Big difference is that these ones are even better than my older works! So regardless of not picking it up for a while, little progress and skill was lost. Sometimes you need to just… not.
It’s September and I have my only 3 shows this year happening soon - I’ll link the events below. I’m not mad about attending less shows, especially because I was judged by a panel of artists and was accepted. It makes me feel validated and makes me feel like an artist, which can be a mood that I feel infrequently. I’m looking forward to show off my new work, and hopefully sell the old paintings that I don’t want to lug around anymore. If you show up to one of these, I will likely have a nice sale going on for the old stuff. The economy sucks and so does life, so if I can sell my art at a cheaper price to make someone happy… I’m very ok with that.
In October I am very excited to share with ya’ll my secret project and hopefully new avenue for painting. I’m branching out again which is exciting, as my old work is kind of at it’s end. Growth can mean letting go, and I am thankful for pushing myself to create a few series of paintings. On to the next adventure we go :)
Jenkintown Arts Festival - https://festivalofthearts.jenkintown.net/
Mt. Airy Arts Festival - https://allenslane.org/mt-airy-arts-festival/
Tyler State Park Craft in the Meadow - https://tylerparkarts.org/crafts-in-the-meadow/
It’s gonna be May
Helloooooo!
It has been a while since I’ve used the blog, definitely neglected it for a long time. Let me catch you up to speed on what I’ve been doing!
Attended two shows this year so far
Redesigned my website (in progress)
Planning to open my shop up for prints and originals by end of May
Adding my Plein Air pieces (!!!)
Adding my pet portraits and hope to open those up for commission by midsummer
Emailing subscribers to keep them in the loop
Keep doing the damn thing and working hard
Spring is almost over already and the year has flown by so fast, looking forward to providing more frequent updates!
-Sarah
Prints and upcoming show!
I’ve been struggling lately finding a printer that will provide the best quality prints and finally chose a printer (yay)! I am waiting on some test prints, but soon I will be able to offer prints to sell or drop ship to whomever wishes to purchase. More to come on that!
On September 23rd I will be attending the Waffles and Wine show at 119 N 3rd St in Philadelphia! I am very excited to show some new pieces and hope to showcase some prints. Super excited to see everyone!
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/waffles-wine-art-show-tickets-692963210617
Brief Reflection, Midsummer
Maintaining this website and my socials will be a definite challenge as I am a full time corporate puppet 40 hours a week. I wanted to jot down my thoughts on the last two months.
I have attended two art shows this summer so far, Pancakes & Booze and HERspace. Both were a terrifying experience at first but after set up was complete I was very happy to see all the work I’ve done this year on one wall. I had great conversations at each show and great feedback! Most notable were suggestions of pushing colors and going wild with it and to keep grinding away. That my work really captured quiet moments (!!) and safe spaces. The other was one of the best compliments I’ve had was about what I was saying in my statements- my story regarding my experiences in college and how art should be xyz. Someone resonated with this and we shared each others experiences - it made my heart soar.
Since these shows I’ve been in a little rut when it comes to painting - I likely burned myself out as I was painting like a mad woman before and between these two shows. I’ve been playing around with new mediums and pushing through the suck. My next show is Waffles & Wine on September 23! My goal is to have prints of my favorite pieces, a mini series, and some new pieces to show.
My Art Philosophy
Let me pop off about art real quick.
Art is teachable. You can’t argue to me otherwise.*
Craft and Art go hand in hand, anyone who tells you art is better can get bent.**
Criticism can bite the dust if it is not constructive.***
Art is not near as fun without a community or art buddy.****
* Like any other skill or hobby, art can be taught and learned by anyone. The basics and the technical skills are the most important first step, starting this backwards (trust me, learned this myself) will hinder ability to learn. Once you got your basics down, your craft begins to be polished as time goes on. Time + Making = Craft If you look at some of your old drawing or your old sculptures, you should see your technical skills progress even if it is just a little. Everyone is on a different timeframe - don’t compare your progress to others!
**Craft is the technical skills you have on your handy toolbelt; drawing, sculpture, ceramics, textiles, metals, etc. The more time you spend honing this skill the easier art can be. Sarah, how can art be easy? Well, it’s not, but boy howdy having craftsmanship under your belt is the biggest hurdle in the race. If you can’t create the piece you are envisioning, it will be very difficult to create your art. Now once you have that beautiful craftsmanship up to the desired expectation (yours and yours alone), that’s when you can focus on the ‘art’ part. Art can literally be anything. It can have a concept, it can talk about politics, it can be a way to express feeling, it can also mean nothing at all, it could also mean that you love making jewelry boxes and no other reason. Art and craft, to me, are the same. If you’re hitting master level in woodworking and create a beautiful rocking chair, that’s art baby. Others may disagree because ‘what does it mean’ or ‘it’s just a chair’ and it is something that the art world tries to keep separate - but setting up these boundaries are for the birds.
***I said what I said. If it’s not helpful and is hurtful, ignore it and keep living your life.
****This point is my own personal opinion, and others may agree, that community or art buddies really get you through it. Community is our social structure, it is something that everyone needs in order to prosper as we are social creatures. Sometimes being an artist is very lonely and can bum you out so much that you stop making. Reach out to an online art community, go to gallery shows, go to art fairs, make art friends! Art friends can help by critiquing or listening to your art woes - having an art buddy can motivate you to get the damn thing done. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it!
The Journey has started
Seriously it’s been ongoing and always a work in progress, but it’s feeling much more achievable now that I’ve had some shows under my belt. In this blog section I hope to share my experiences and share some resources in hopes to assist other upcoming artists on their journey. I dislike it when other artists gatekeep their techniques or their tips/tricks so I’m leading by example, even though I’m still a newbie.
Goals for the rest of 2023:
Share blog posts, share resources
Get accepted into a gallery show (juried preferred)
Offer prints and mini series
Keep doing the damn thing