We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sarah Stellman a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sarah, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today I’m sure there have been days where the challenges of being an artist or creative force you to think about what it would be like to just have a regular job. When’s the last time you felt that way? Did you have any insights from the experience?

I have found it important to recognize that having a “regular job” in addition to an art practice is reasonable and often preferable. I work as a technical writer and editor and find that working a job that does not require that I expend my creative energy allows me to sustain my art practice. I have witnessed some of my peers struggling to find work in their field after graduating art school, and working jobs that may incorporate their studio skills but leave them with little energy to experiment in their own work. Some advice I received after graduating was to find work that has nothing to do with my art practice. This advice relieved me of some the pressure to “use my degree” in studio art after graduating. I think everyone gets something different out of art school, and for some finding work in this field comes naturally and is fulfilling. I also think sustaining an art practice can take many different forms and in no way requires your day job to be art-focused.

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 make paintings about sentimentality, remembered images, and special things. I work in oil paint on primed wood panels. I think people often connect with the sense of the familiar in my work – I paint mundane things, and I think people like to see things they recognize in contexts that they do not recognize.

When I am working on a painting, I am thinking about the unseen, personal connections between the everyday objects and shapes that I am rendering. Sometimes these connections are very meaningful, and other times they are silly or a passing thought. When my connections to these objects and images (or the connections between them) persist, this often dictates the way I select the final image I want to create.

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

I enjoy the complete freedom and malleability of having a studio practice. Being an artist at an early stage of my career allows me to explore and experiment with how I make work and what I make work about.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Listening to artists’ experiences and needs and providing artists with opportunities to experiment is paramount in my opinion.

Contact Info:

• Website: sarahstellman.com
• Instagram: @sarahstellman
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-stellman-7535311b9

Image Credits
Alex Boeschenstein, Sandy Carson