Statement:

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As an artist, my work addresses anxiety, excess, and complicity and involves investigating history, personal experience, and cultural memory. The research that forms the basis of my work often begins on the internet, delving into leftover fragments of the information age: broken links, archives, and long-dead chat rooms. I use the information gained from the internet as a catalyst for site visits, material exploration, and further research in the creation of works that ultimately question how information is presented and perceived.

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The histories I research are at times controversial in nature (sea level rise, solid waste disposal) and, in turn, are part of larger complicated histories. I do not stand outside these histories and instead recognize my role within them both on a personal and systemic level, often collapsing my personal experiences with the historical record.

 

The resulting work physically addresses the questions of memory and personal experience through the language of tourism and the creation and re-purposing of items such as photographs, souvenirs, sounds, maps, and journals. The resulting accumulations are presented en masse and exist in the space between a personal archive and a display at a roadside museum.

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Biography:

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Sarah Knudtson is a teaching artist residing in Jupiter, Florida, whose creative practice delves into themes of anxiety and excess. Utilizing the visual language of tourism, she explores these complexities through repurposed and assembled objects like photographs, souvenirs, sounds, maps, and journals.
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Knudtson holds both a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art and a Master of Fine Arts in Art & Technology, both from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her artistic process intertwines personal experiences with broader cultural narratives, resulting in works that invite viewers to consider their own relationship systems that support them.
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Beyond her studio practice, Knudtson is passionate about fostering creativity in others. As a teaching artist, she utilizes her expertise to engage students of all ages in exploring art and expressing themselves creatively.
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She currently resides with her partner, Stephen Germana, and their cats, Meep and Frankie.

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