Meet Sara van Vliet, a graduate from HKU and Frank Mohr institute. But also a high level marathon skater! Sports and Arts, where perseverance is important, the strength to go on and get the best out of oneself! We find this in Sara's work, it is energetic, her subjects taken out of daily life, sometimes to absurdity. Still lives at times colourful, others toned down, mediums ranging from paint to plaster, glue and spraypaint. Interested in Sara's work? Contact us via the button below.

Artists' statement
When I look around I am sometimes confronted with something that I consider strange or funny, something ordinary yet unusual. It's those moments that I want to capture on canvas because they invite me to question my own existence. Like, for example, a laundry rack. A laundry rack is usually a huge annoyance. The rack always takes up too much space and there are also messy (but thankfully clean) clothes on it. But it says something about our lives. We all have that rack, why is it so practical and yet ugly? While overthinking about the rack it completely loses it’s context and becomes an absurd form. The form stays in my head until it annoys me so greatly, I have to paint it. That frustration, is what I paint. My irritation at the fact that I am just like everyone
else. Every day I contemplate the symbolism of life. Every object has meaning, which changes withevery situation they are put in. That duality of everything intrigues me, I can work endlessly with it in my paintings. I have always considered still lifes boring, but actually there can be a lot of substance behind them. In my work, for example, I often play with light and shadow; using these kinds of dualities can completely change a scene or atmosphere.

So, my work is about the everyday. I hint towards narration without actually spoiling the plot. I feel an urge not to overwhelm my viewers with explanations, but rather to challenge them to question themselves. Not only about my work, but also about their behaviors. I am always searching for the best way to bring the images to life that make that happen. That's why I experiment with things like the thin soft lines of an airbrush, the texture, coarseness, and depth of plaster, and the different tones of ink. With these materials, among others, I can choose how I want to depict something and what they should convey. So, my work is not only about visualizing the things we know, but also about visually philosophizing about the hidden complexity of their existence.

Interested in Sara's artwork? Contact JumpstArt via the 'Connect' button below for any questions, availability of the three pieces, or to schedule an appointment with the artist directly to see more of her work in her studio.