Sarah Rubenstein

Artist
Territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Huron-Wendat (Toronto, ON, Canada)

Shadow Box, Mixed Media: paper, metal, glass, stone, plastic, 3.25” x 3.25” x 0.5, 2022, $28 (proceeds donated to a local food bank)
Necklace, Ribbon and Metal, 1.75” x 2”, 2022, $32 (proceeds donated to support Ukrainian people)

*Shipping not included

Artist Statement:

My creativity lay dormant for much of my adulthood, and it was only with the birth of my first child that I discovered that all of us can be creative, myself included. Out of the blue I began writing poetry and songs, and recorded a children’s album (“Are You a Porcupine?”) a few years later.

Then, with the birth of my second child, I unexpectedly began receiving beautiful images when I would relax and close my eyes, and in the last few years I began to create visual art based on these images. The pendant and cord in my first piece is an example of “calling in the muse” in this way. In the case of this necklace, I received a beautiful image that combined blues, gold, and burgundy. I looked at the materials I had on hand - in this case different ribbons and a piece of hardware - and eventually arrived at this pendant.

More recently I began to “collect” striking colour combinations and arrays that I noticed in my day to day life. These inspirations have appeared in the form of the lovely colours and pattern created by tree buds fallen on grey concrete, or the different shades of purply pink on a flower in a garden. The shadow box, my second piece, is an example of this mode of connecting with the muse. With this work I recognized that I had been taking pictures of this juxtaposition of colours: what I think of as muddy blue and matte “dirty” gold. I realized that I could give myself permission to simply play with these colours that I love, and further, that I could recognize this playfulness and simple display of items as art.

Thank you so much and I'm so grateful to have found Erica Ross, Open Studio, and this lovely group - another way the muse has been working for me.

Bio:

Sarah Rubenstein dabbled in songwriting, writing, and drawing in her youth, but her creative life went dormant long before she reached adulthood. She received a master’s degree in counselling psychology and worked in research and project management, leaning more toward “left brain” analytical pursuits.

Sarah’s creative life was revived with the birth of her first daughter. She unexpectedly started writing poems and songs, and released her children’s album, “Are You a Porcupine?” a few years later. With the birth of her second daughter, her interest in the visual arts came alive. For the past number of years she’s been slowly exploring these different forms of creativity. Finding the community, structure, and support of Open Studio has been a wonderful gift.

Contact: sarah.rubenstein@gmail.com