We recently connected with Sara Pizzi and have shared our conversation below.
Sara , looking forward to hearing all of your stories 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?
The career as an artist is risk taking at the same level of any other career- the only difference from any other job is that the pathway is not linear as others. For most of the job titles there is a direct course of study, directly connected with an internship or to organizations which may help you to find a position or will directly hire you. Being an artist may mean that each of us has a different degree, title and level, complete different experience and background. Both are following the exception of tasks, projects, deadlines and workload. The network is fundamental in both. The work is stable until the company you are working for/with is stable. The only variant is that the paycheck depends on the amount of work you execute, and this can reflect in a positive or negative way. Artists are equal to any freelancer worker. What is the most risky?
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m a performing conceptual artist, which includes also being a choreographer, dancer and teacher. I started my career in my teen years with urban/commercial dance, being part of a dance agency that allowed me to perform for national events, competitions, tv shows and advertisements commercials. My life completely shifted after I moved from Italy to NYC. My education has become primarily based on ballet and modern techniques, landing on the complete focus on the study and application of contemporary dance, being able to create an organic and unique style that mixed my urban background with a more academic and technical aspect. Now, my art is based on any physical medium which can evoke any inner personal exploration, deeper analysis of our inner self, the creation of a safe place for discovering and questioning & can bring togetherness in solving some common social issues. This creates performances which break the concept of standard performance creating collaborative, conceptual, interactive art experiences & teaching any level and any age, prioritizing any class that involves people with physical and mental disabilities or for underrepresented communities. These are the goals of my own movement collective that I founded in 2021 with Aika Takeshima, naming it sarAika movement collective, looking forward to expanding my network and dance abilities to other contemporary dance companies/organizations. I really trust in this project and it makes me proud that last year we were able to grow so much, performing every month for different DEI organizations/events, being able to assist and represent underrepresented communities and voices. Thanks to the success of this year, the schedule for 2023 is full and this makes me proud of myself and the NYC dance community. In the meantime, as a performer I’m currently working for several dance companies based in NYC and for some projects of various aspects that can include pure dance or collaboration with visual and performing artists. I’m a company member of: Valerie Green/Dance Entropy which I’m also teaching artists for after-school programs, dance captain of Open Dance Ensemble, Valleto, The next Stage Project & Light Painting NYC and guest artists/choreographer/dancer to more than 40 events/organizations based in the 5 boroughs of NYC.
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
Absolutely yes, and even if it will sound too vague, I want to mention: New York itself is a really rich and constant resource for all kinds of artists. It took me few years to understand the nature of the networking and artist community assistance, but once I’ve understood now I’m open to confirm that one of the most precious artists value of New York is not the dreamy aspect of it that inspires people, it is not the amount of people or the huge size of this city, but it is the interconnected and solid net of support that this city provides to artists. Naming a few of the thousand organizations: CUNI, Brooklyn Arts Council, NWNY, dancenyc, Pentacle, etc.. They always provide updated resources of all kinds for artists and needs of all kinds from economical support, networking, mentorship, career outbreak, teaching assistance, free community events, grants, etc.. Now I understand completely the first tips that my first NYC friend told me “Help someone because someone is always going to help you”, and it is true. All the resources and assistance are out there, you just need to look for it.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is the creative aspect that is constantly underlined and necessary to the completion of a task. Problem solving, organizzative skills, cognitive thinking are few of the necessary abilities that an artist should possess and those are not limited in the use of creativity: no scheme to follow or rule to break, we are working toward innovation making the completion of each task always a rewarding and refreshing experience. It is also a career that allows everyone to never stop learning, meeting new people, reading the world from different perspectives, digesting new languages and cultures. In conclusion, personally being an artist who create and live art as social action, one of the most relevant aspects for me is the fundamental value that art is representing in order to speak aloud about social issues that are uncommon to face or to speak about, keeping alive the awareness of people of important social issues around the world, creating a safe space for communication, thinking and re-elaborating ideas. Something that only art and artists can do.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://sarapizzi.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_sarapizzi_/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sara.pizzi.7
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sara-pizzi-a514281a6/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/SaraPizzi3
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrojXl1b6CortTwOIyKIvCA
Image Credits
BECCA VISION IG: @becca.vision Website: https://www.beccavisionnyc.com