Born and raised in the North shore, Sarah’s whimsical paintings are filled with warmth, joy, and original characters that pop out and introduce themselves in all kinds of ways! At Local Colors, she features her work on infants’ clothing, cards and wall art. Here, Sarah talks about how the sea air, experimenting and being a mom inspires her art more than she would have ever imagined.
When did you first become interested in painting?
I have been wildly interested in drawing, painting, doodling, and creating with my hands ever since I was a young child. I always had quite an imagination and loved inventing whimsical characters, exploring various mediums and telling stories through art.
Can you talk a little bit about your method, how you get texture in your paintings?
Watercolors have always been my favorite medium. When I was a child, I was taught how to paint using salt. Years later when I became more interested in delving deeper into watercolors and creating texture, I revisited painting with salt and also learned to create texture with wax paper, paper towels, scraps of re-used plastic wrap, bubble wrap, etc. I have found that painting in this way allows me to create wonderful detail while also letting go of the outcome and allowing the process to guide me.
Your characters have such life and movement! Do you have a specific process for developing a character?
I don’t have a particular process that I use consistently; characters show up in all kinds of ways! Often they will pop out and introduce themselves in a splash of paint, a knot in a piece of wood, or a tile on the bathroom floor. My husband and I used to spend entire weekends coming up with different ways to find fun little characters. The first time I used a can of webbing spray, I was delighted to find a group of windswept ladies in the drastic splats of paint.
My porpoise puns, barefoot girls with seaweed hair, whimsical whales and laughing blueberries are all examples of the pure joy that the salty sea air provides my imaginative brain.
Friends and family will occasionally ask me to draw an animal or sea creature, which will spiral into a period of researching traits, quirks and characteristics about the animal, sparking ideas that lead to doodles, sketches, and eventually my own version of what the animal looks like.
I’ve found that the key to creating a character is to let yourself play, experiment, and understand that while you hold the pencil in your hand, the personality and traits of your character will show itself to you. You just have to let it!
Being around Gloucester and the north shore area, how do your surroundings affect your art?
I was born and raised with my two sisters in Beverly, MA, spending lots of time each summer on the rocky shores of Maine. I moved around quite a bit with my family and after college, but eventually settled back on the East Coast with my husband. I always tell people that the fog and blueberries called me home. My porpoise puns, barefoot girls with seaweed hair, whimsical whales and laughing blueberries are all examples of the pure joy that the salty sea air provides my imaginative brain.
I’ve found that the key to creating a character is to let yourself play, experiment, and understand that while you hold the pencil in your hand, the personality and traits of your character will show itself to you. You just have to let it!
I once took a walk along the water in Beverly on a very foggy morning and saw an elderly man in shorts and knee socks creating the most magical bubbles with a large bubble wand. Characters and inspiration are everywhere!
How has motherhood affected your artwork/creativity?
I had been working with infants as a postpartum doula and creating whimsical children’s clothing and illustrations for years before my daughter graced us with her presence in the spring of 2019. While I find it much more difficult to force my creativity into her nap schedule each day, I also find that seeing the world again through her eyes inspires my art more than I could ever have imagined. I am constantly creating new designs just for her based on her discoveries, interests and personality.
For example?
When Eva was about 10 months old, she had a small red and orange pillow lion that she LOVED. Every time she saw him she would laugh hysterically and roar until we turned it into a game. She would also roar when she was really frustrated or upset which was both terribly funny and slightly embarrassing in public. The illustration “Fiercely Beautiful” came as a result of the sudden wildness that could erupt from such a small, sweet little baby.
For Eva’s birthday this year I have a new rocket ship design that will be released around the second week of May. Stay tuned!