Today we’d like to introduce you to Sara Stites.
Hi sara, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born in New York City and lived on Long Island until the 5th grade, when I moved, with my parents and two sisters to Puerto Rico. Four years later, I moved back to New York, my parents having divorced. The time in Puerto Rico was definitive in my view of the world.
Throughout my work, I’ve been drawn to the interplay of imagery, creating moments of
recognition or surprise. A key part of my process involves merging sketches from my notebooks
with more realistically rendered images, finding a balance between abstraction and detail.
Recently, during a residency at MillayArts, I revisited this approach with a new twist. I
experimented with blending cartoonish portraits I had drawn with photographs I had taken over
the years. Though I’d long held onto these photos, I hadn’t yet found a way to incorporate them
into my work. At the residency, however, the idea clicked, leading me down an exciting path of
exploration that resulted in a series I’m truly excited about.
As I worked through this process, I found myself clarifying my approach, distilling the forms to
capture the essence of what I’m doing. I applied this same method to the portraits. It all came
down to three essential elements: first, the photographic image; second, a freehand response; and third, the background. By limiting myself to these three components, I’ve sharpened the
message. Each piece conveys a moment in time, a fleeting impression, something that can only
be understood by engaging with and reacting to these few simple forms.
My work has been in both one person and group shows in Miami, Hollywood, FL,the Orlando Museum of Art, Maine, Buenos Aires, Nice and Paris and is in the PAMM, MOAD, Good/Horvitz and Mosquera Collections in Miami in addition to other private collections.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The usual struggles of being a wife and mother while maintaining a career have been challenging but I know that all have contributed to a life I’ve wanted and loved.
The life of an artist committed to a studio practice is not the same as commitment to an art career. The studio requires concentration as part of a search for meaning in order to produce work with resonance.
The development of a career with outside recognition has been my biggest challenge.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Over time, my art has become a conversation between the past and the present—a dialogue between mastery and discovery.
I’m often described as technically adept, and that’s a gift: I can draw or paint almost anything. Yet that ability can also be a crutch, since it’s tempting to let technique stand in for deeper visual exploration.
Throughout my life as an artist, ideas about what art is have continually evolved. The lines between “high” art—what we see in museums and galleries—and “low” art—comic books, billboards, advertising—have blurred. Thanks in large part to artists like Andy Warhol, the inclusion of everyday imagery in the museum world has made those old distinctions feel irrelevant.
I’m proud to be working in oil painting—an ancient medium—and to make it resonate with newness and vitality. In the end, what makes me proud is not the perfection of technique, but keeping painting alive: curious, vital, and new.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
Of course, AI is the big issue. It’s hard to tell but I think that people will always appreciate the work of the hand.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sarastites.com
- Instagram: sarastitesartist
- Facebook: sarastitesartist
- LinkedIn: sara stites
