Today we’d like to introduce you to Sara Marie E.B..
Hi Sara Marie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am an artist and a writer. And really, I always have been. I’ve been painting for as long as I can remember. My grandmother was a self-made watercolor artist. She didn’t finish high school but ended up teaching art for a college. She was my first inspiration.
In high school, I began creating pet portraits. I love animals and I always knew that I wanted to pursue a career in the arts. Even though I enjoyed painting animals (and still do), I didn’t find the true beauty and intellect of working abstractly until college.
I had always wanted to go to art school, but I knew that I didn’t have the funds, so I followed my best friend to GCSU until one of my professors told me that I needed to go to an art school. That was when I transferred to SCAD. It was an absolute dream. I had spent some time doing summer courses at SCAD, but this was the real deal. I had made it.
I started out so confident, but in face of incredible talent, grueling critiques and a primary professor that never seemed pleased with my work, I lost my voice. I graduated from my dream school after an exhausting and wonderfully growing three years.
After graduation, I worked in a gallery. It was a beautiful time. I was immersed in the work I had always dreamt of doing, but unfortunately, I couldn’t make a living from that job. So, I turned to doing graphic design work for another company. I had always promised myself that I wouldn’t work a desk job, but adulthood hits us hard sometimes. It was a rough two years, but I learnt so much about myself. I didn’t paint very often, and when I did, I was sort of disconnected. I painted pieces to sell. I was desperate to prove that I could be a career artist, after all, I had gone to art school.
Over the few years after I graduated, I was faced with some losses. I lost someone dear to me in a tragic way, my mental health was failing, and I felt disconnected from my work. That is until I started to write again.
I had begun stories throughout my life but had never completed any of them. I started to write as I sat at my desk. My novel was my escape. It was the place that I could go to get away from reality. It was my therapy. Finally, in 2020, I took the leap to pursue my career as an artist full-time.
Then COVID hit. It was a disheartening year. The news came on my birthday, the very day I had planned my first official release of my online shop. So, I turned from my artwork to focus on my novel. I set a goal to complete it and I did. I had never planned to share my story, but my husband encouraged me to publish it. It was an exhilarating idea. It still feels unreal that I am a published author.
I didn’t paint more than a handful of paintings in 2021, and when I returned to painting this year, I recognized a new clarity in my work. Stepping away from painting, and publishing my novel, had given new life to my pieces. I found joy and freedom in them again.
I used to want my work to bring forth some sort of existential question, but after experiencing trauma and being faced with new anxieties, I fell back into my work being a moment of peace for myself. Both my writing and my artwork have the same purpose. I came to realize that I didn’t truly want my intention for my work to be one of questioning or some deeper meaning, I wanted my work to provide a moment of peace and joy to my audience. A moment to escape reality and just be.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I would love to say that the road has been easy and that I have “made it” as a successful artist, but that just is not the truth. Pursuing your dreams is never easy, but it is undoubtedly worth it.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Throughout my career as an artist, my work as morphed and my direction has changed many times. I used to resent that I didn’t have a distant style, though some of my friends assured me that I did. I wanted to create a body of work that was cohesive and “looked like me”. I have found that that comes with time. I mean, I have been creating my entire life and just now feel like I have a true sense of direction.
Primarily, I work abstractly. I work with all sorts of media: acrylic, ink, oil, even coffee. I still paint pet portraits from time to time, but I focus more on capturing the essence of the animal than hyper-realism.
I would say that I am most proud of myself for not giving up. I am proud that I have learned to listen to my intuition, to change course, when necessary, to rest when my body tells me too. I used to push myself so hard. I felt the need to prove to everyone around me that I could make it as an artist. Now, I create for myself. Of course, I love it when someone makes the decision to bring one of my works into their home. It’s an honor. But it isn’t the purpose of my work anymore. That truth frees me to create from a place of joy, instead of fear.
How do you think about luck?
In business, I wouldn’t say it’s luck as much as it is networking. I know that I have been incredibly blessed by the people I have in my life. I have met, and worked with, some of the most generous and inspiring artists and business people. I suppose this could be considered luck, but I believe that people are divinely placed along your path to guide and aid you.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sublimesipstudio.com and https://www.authorsmarie.com
- Instagram: @saramarie_artist and @authorsmarie
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/saramarieartist
