Sarah Wieben

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    Sarah Wieben is a Minnesota native who grew up in the (then) sleepy and quaint lakeside town of Wayzata.

    She studied Russian History at the University of Minnesota before traveling to the Soviet Union to take a job with the American Embassy, Moscow.

    While living in Russia, Sarah visited the many excellent museums of Moscow and discovered her love of art.

    Once back in the United States, she decided to make a major career change and enrolled in a fine art program at Minneapolis College of Art and Design, where she now teaches painting trough the Continuing Education department.

    Sarah maintains a studio at the Northrup King building in the arts district of NE
    Minneapolis.

Little About Sarah

What’s something people don’t know about you, or would be surprised to learn about you?

Not everyone knows that I had a whole other career (high school history teacher) before I became an artist.

What song/album/artist is currently on repeat in your studio?

I have extremely varied taste in music, but right now I’m listening to a lot of Rage Against the Machine. Bulls on Parade. Seems apt.

When is your favorite time to create?

Mid-afternoon.

What is your guilty pleasure tv show or movie?

Old Seinfeld episodes.

What is an unusual skill you have outside of art?

I speak Russian.

If you weren’t an artist, what would you love to be doing?

Writer

What’s your biggest artistic obsession right now?

El Anatsui. He is an astonishing Ghanaian artist who makes breathtaking sculptures
out of bottle caps, and bits of metal debris.

What’s the most unexpected thing you’ve used in an artwork?

Vintage sewing patterns.

What was your first creative memory, or a specific artistic moment that made you realize,“I really want to do this?”

I saw a Matisse exhibit at the National Gallery in Moscow in my 20s and it planted a seed in me.

Where were you born and where did you grow up?

I’m a native Minnesota. I grew up in Wayzata.

Who are your artistic influences or mentors?

Willem, de Kooning, Joan Mitchell, Philip Guston, Frank Auerbach, Lee Krasner, just to name a few.

If your art had a personality, how would you describe it?

Unafraid.

How would you describe your style to someone unfamiliar with your work?

Bold, expressive brushstrokes, and strong color.

What color do you use most, and why?

I love all versions of pink. I want to rehabilitate its reputation from notions of being saccharin or whimsical.