Sara Slaughter is a painter. For Slaughter, her role as an artist is "to bring some inspiration and beauty to people who might otherwise not have it." To understand Slaughter's practice more, we asked her a series of questions before the exhibition. The following are her replies:
What comes first – the medium or the message?
The message. All art conveys something that the artist is trying to say whether they realize it or not. So for my art I think about what I'm trying to say and then think of ways that I can say that in image form. It’s almost a problem solving process. How can I convey a meaning without words? This exhibit features some artistic experiments I've been doing over the past year. I am a strong supporter of science and human innovation, and I have been working on ways for that to inhabit my art, while also working with the cityscapes and architectural subjects I love.
What do you feel is your role as an artist?
Society without art is disjointed and ugly. The role of me as an artist, or any artist, is to bring some inspiration and beauty to people who might otherwise not have it.
What influences your practice/works?
I am greatly influenced by architecture and science and how it relates to human beings.
Who are the other artists you look to for inspiration? And what about their works do you like?
I love Brooke Olivares-Caloiaro. She provides glimpses into normal life that feel like you're seeing them in a dream or through the surface of water. And her color palette is amazing. I also like the surrealist work of Jacek Yerka. It has an almost Dali-like feel but with an architectural inspiration. I like the wild colors of the cityscapes of Leonid Afremov as well.
What other writings do you recommend reading to have a better understanding of your artworks and your art practice/process?
Salvador Dalí: The Construction of the Image, 1925-1930
Skylines of the World: Yesterday and Today
Art Nouveau: Utopia-Reconciling the Irreconcilable
Georgia O'Keeffe Nature and Abstraction
Exhibition is supported in part by Fringe Festival KC. For more information, Fringe Festival KC.
