Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sarah Joy Dunlap. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Sarah Joy, thanks for joining us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

The drive behind my work is an exploration of growth and evolution through a lens of care. It is both celebratory and mournful. I assemble tapestries and other soft sculptural sewn work depicting sometimes otherworldly, peculiar creatures. There are fish that smile, ceramic bugs with legs of wire and thread, gentle hands that hold, rainclouds that nourish the soil and make the worms wiggle up to the surface to breath. There are images of hope, maybe in a post or pre human world, or maybe in an alternate sort of world where mankind hasn’t brought the earth to the brink of a sixth mass extinction event. I choose to approach these topics of despair with an almost stubborn, firmly grounded optimism and wishfulness. My practice of art making is reverent and asks an intimate relationship from me. I make a point to use primarily secondhand textiles, it is important to me and to the work to make that effort in sustainability, and in honoring and extending the life of the fabric. It is a time intensive and laborious kind of making, a slow moving and meditative process, and I think that this approach relays the devotion in the final work.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am finishing my MFA at the Pennyslvania Academy of the Fine Arts, graduating in two weeks at the time of writing this! I moved to Philadelphia to pursue this degree two years ago, and have learned so much about myself in that time. It’s been a beautiful experience. I recieved my BFA from the University of Alabama in Huntsville, and grew up in the same area. I love my home, and care deeply about the South. I was blessed to grow up with plenty of woods around my home, and a fascination with the nature around me. That love has followed me throughout my life, and I draw directly from that love in my current work. I think there is so much to learn from looking in an open, curious, gentle way.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

For me there is a feeling when you’ve been following your threads, trying to be true in your work, but you haven’t really been able to verbalize what the work means. It feels like its on the tip of my tongue, just out of clarity. But after continuing and trusting the work, trusting my process, and then, sometimes bit by bit and sometimes in what feel like huge revelations, the truth of the work comes into focus. It becomes legible to me, and I’m able to see what I’d been trying to put into words for however long. It’s so exciting everytime, and I love the way that all new information gained just opens up more possibilities, more things to figure out.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Since moving to Philly and beginning my Master’s program, my medium of choice has shifted. My undergrad focus was in painting and drawing, with a deep affection for sculpting. I considered myself primarily an oil painter. Early in my MFA I began hand sewing, and realized how marvelous I find everything about fiber arts and craft related media. I’ve continued hand sewing and expanding upon that, and have transformed my practice in a way that I would not at all have predicted, while still carrying on the skills and sensibilities that I learned from painting.

Contact Info:

• Website: sarahjoydunlap.com
• Instagram: sarahjoy.art

Image Credits
Jade Alderman