We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sarah Hicks. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sarah below.

Sarah, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

I think a lot of creatives and small business owners feel their whole career was built on risks, and continue to face risk with each dream and reach for growth. Like most of the artists I know, I didn’t grow up thinking I was going to be an artist one day. Drawing was something I always enjoyed but even from a young age, you get told it’s not realistic and there were other passions that drew me in that fit the more stereotypical career box. I feel like my first big risk came when applying to universities, I had first applied for an urban studies program to later transition into architecture. A plan I had for myself for the last 5 years or so and felt like the logical thing to do. A week later, I learned about an outdoor education program at a different university and it was all I could think about afterwards. I had fallen in love with canoe tripping over my pre-teen and teenage years and this program was filled with canoeing, backpacking, an arctic canoe trip, a dogsledding expedition, and the chance to do an exchange in Norway. It seemed like everything I secretly dreamed of but felt so entirely out of reach while out canoeing in northern Saskatchewan or nestled at home on the prairies reading National Geographic magazines. I had no clue what I’d do with my degree afterwards but I took the risk and followed my heart to the option that carried more uncertainty. Even when choosing my courses, I never really had a plan of building up to some end goal, I just chose whatever sparked my interests and desire for learning.

By choosing to pursue play and curiosity, I found out more in depth about what I’m passionate about and was challenged to think about the why. This is how I found my passion for art and the outdoors, but also to make the connection of their intersectionality and a joy in sharing it with others. From there on out, passion and a trust in the process has outweighed a fear of uncertainty, leading to decision after decision that all carry some risk; taking a 28 day mountaineering course after one backpacking trip which lead to my love of the mountains, moving into a van to pursue art and the mountains, moving provinces for a third time, reaching out to galleries, my first art shows, acquiring studio space, jumping head on into trying to do art full time while also pursuing ski guiding. The list goes on and on. There’s been just as many, if not more, road bumps and blocks along the way, but the stubbornness persists. Lead with the heart and to me, the risks are worth it.

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’m a place-based landscape artist that works primarily in watercolour and acrylic. All my work is based on places I’ve had the privilege of climbing, hiking and skiing through out Western and Northern Canada. I’ll either take a photo or make a quick drawing in my pocket sketchbook to paint back at my studio, or create “en plein air” which is when I bring the painting materials out with me to capture the scene before me.

While studying Outdoor Education and Kinesiology at the University of Alberta, I was able to take some drawing courses which helped me build a strong foundation to start to teach myself how to paint. It was also during this time that I began to realize and further explore the intersectionality between art and the outdoors, where art can be a tool for connecting you to a place or environment. From there, the obsession took off, painting for at least an hour as a break from my studies and athletics training but also as a way to transport myself back to the mountains while living 5 hours away.

As part of my gallery and show pieces, I started teaching outdoor watercolour courses as well. To me, it has felt like an intersectionality of all I learned in university and direct action in combining all my passions. Teaching people how to paint outside gives them a different view on perspectives within a painting, but also gets them to slow down, and more intimately connect to the details of an environment. They’re looking at how each element whether a distant mountain, glimmering lake, swaying tree, or shadow of a rock, all connect to each other to create the larger scene before them. And because of my self-taught background, I understand some of the challenges beginners face differently, and encourage them to explore a variety of techniques to find a style that clicks and works best for them.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Connecting people to the environment is the main goal of my art. I want to transport them to the places I paint, whether they’ve been there or not, and this increased connection hopefully increases their care for the land. It’s so easy to feel disconnected from the places you love, especially in more urban settings and if they’re not somewhere you can just go to on a whim. Painting the places that inspire me personally also feels like a bit of a love letter to these amazing ecosystems I have the privilege of passing through in my outdoor endeavours. It helps me feel connected to them, but also a way for me to communicate with others the sense of awe and gratitude I feel for these places and this life I get to live. I’m not the greatest with my words, so I chose to say them with a paintbrush instead.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Creating pieces that connect people to their favourite places and special memories is the most rewarding aspect for me. It’s always so special at markets or art events to have someone share their memory of a place with me, whether the specific place in the painting or it reminds them of somewhere else. Sometimes people don’t directly tell you but you can physically see the moment they connect; their gaze changes, shoulders relax, face softens with a slight grin; and you know their mind has been transported.

I often get asked if I do commission work, and I love it for that same reason. Being entrusted to capture a special place or memory for someone is such an honour whether a wedding gift, spot they got engaged, a memorial piece, or a really memorable trip with friends. Helping maintain that connection to those places, people, and feelings is truly rewarding.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sarahhicksart.ca
• Instagram: @sarahhicks.art

Image Credits

Maxim Vidricaire
Peter Wojnar
Alex Saad
Sarah Hicks