Sarah Paulsen documents the strangeness of pandemic life, the struggles of parenting a toddler and her communion with nature in her newest exhibit.
Kirkwood native Sarah Paulsen is sharing new artwork with a powerful message.
An opening reception for Paulsen’s new exhibit, “Suchness and Yearning: On Mothering and Mindfulness” will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 4, at The High Low Gallery, 3301 Washington Ave.
“This is about mothering and healing trauma, but also about how we show up for ourselves, our friends and our community. So I hope that even a person who’s not a parent might find some resonance in this exhibit,” said Paulsen, an artist, filmmaker, teacher, illustrator and community organizer.
Paulsen’s art and animation projects often reflect social change themes.
“I examine community and identity by illustrating stories that are intimate and comments on larger social issues,” she said.
The exhibit coincides with the release of Paulsen’s new, illustrated book of the same title, and the culminating experience of artwork produced as part of the book, which serves as her final project as a Kranzberg Arts Foundation Artist in Residence.
Raised in Kirkwood, Sarah Paulsen is an artist, filmmaker and community organizer whose artwork has been exhibited widely in local and national exhibitions. | photo courtesy of Sarah Paulsen
“The joy of an image, of color, of seeing a story in a picture, is often aimed at children, but this book of illustrations is made for adults,” she said. “It can be flipped through and read at random, or straight through as a story. I know parents don’t get a lot of time for themselves, so I wanted to make something that could be taken in during short windows that was enjoyable, relatable, honest and resourceful.”
The opening reception will be the first opportunity to purchase Paulsen’s self-published book, which was funded through a Kickstarter campaign.
For naming the exhibit and book, Paulsen said she started with a word sandwich.
“Essentially, I wrote a bunch of important words related to the book and the show on small pieces of paper,” she explained. “I narrowed these down to about 10. Then in February, I was on a self-designed retreat with two dear women friends. They generously agreed to brainstorm the name. ‘Mother(ing) as Meditation’ became the simplified version of the ideas in the show and the book.”
Paulsen said this overall artistic initiative bloomed from questions and quiddities regarding mothering, reflections and self-compassion practices.
“At the start of the pandemic, I illustrated precious and quotidian moments of my days in a small format that I shared on social media,” she said. “These works became a meditative lifeline to process extreme duality of grief and joy, to validate my experiences and to create connections to others.
“I documented the strangeness of pandemic life, the struggles of parenting a toddler and my communion with nature,” Paulsen continued. “Parenting was a tidal wave for me. The pandemic hit when my child was one and a half years old, and the isolation of this period forced me to face myself in a new way.”
She said the prolonged solitude invited contemplation that led her to heal past trauma.
“Surprisingly, motherhood and mindfulness became a doorway to unearth the deeper story of my body,” Paulsen said.
Along the way, there are certain paintings she made of her 4-year-old son, Rainier, that he describes as “his” paintings.
“I think he sort of accepts art making around him as part of his existence,” she said. “He often wakes from bed and comes down to find me in the studio working. I’ll show him what I’ve been making, and he has a curiosity about what I’m doing.”
Art Teacher With Accolades
Paulsen holds a bachelor’s degree in visual art from the University of Missouri-Columbia and a master’s degree from the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Art at Washington University. She now lives and works in St. Louis, where she teaches art and animation at Marian Middle School and St. Louis Community College.
However, she said when she was attending Kirkwood High School, she wanted to be a marine biologist. She didn’t start studying art seriously until college, and even then, she continued to pursue Spanish and environmental studies.
“I’ve worked as an art teacher in a variety of levels and media, from college-level drawing and elementary art classes to adult learners with continuing education,” Paulsen said. “I’ve learned to teach about everything, but I believe my specialties are in painting, animation, video, drawing and design.
“I continue to learn how to be a better teacher, and it nurtures my own creativity to witness my student’s discoveries and experiments,” she added.
Paulsen said she enjoys participatory public murals, thematic roundtable discussions and the now-annual People’s Joy Parade on Cherokee Street.
She was the recipient of the 2018 Great Rivers Biennial, which culminated in an exhibit at Contemporary Art Museum-St. Louis.
Her artwork has been included in local and national exhibitions, and her prize-winning films have been featured in the St. Louis International Film Festival, True/False Film Festival, Black Maria Film Festival, Motivate Film Festival and the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival.
As a 2010 C.A.T. Institute Fellow and 2015 Regional Arts Commission Artist Fellow, she garnered numerous awards for her work and also completed several residencies, including the Cite Internationale des Arts, Paris.
“I think my curiosity about the world has always propelled my learning,” she said.
In addition to the opening reception on Friday, Aug. 4, an artist talk with Paulsen about the “Mothering and Mindfulness” exhibit is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 2, at The High Low.
The exhibit runs through Sept. 9. The gallery is open to the public during café hours, every day from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. No appointment needed. For more information, visit KranzbergartsFoundation.org/High-Low.
