Today we’d like to introduce you to Wren Sarrow.
Hi Wren, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
As a visual artist, I manage The Artists Gallery (TAG) at 5458 Wilshire Blvd, in Los Angeles. This role, which I have held since August 2022, allows me to showcase my art at TAG in Studio 03 alongside Elyse Wyman. I am also the President of the artHYPE Foundation, a member of the Greater Miracle Mile Chamber of Commerce board, and a dedicated volunteer with the SHE IS HOPE LA charity, and this allows me to contribute to uplifting single mom families.
I was born and adopted in the U.K. and moved to the U.S. in 1973 with my two brothers and parents. We moved because my father was a Methodist Minister and felt a calling to preach in the St. Louis, Missouri, area. After two years in Bridgeton, Missouri, our family moved to Palmyra, near Hannibal, where I grew up. In school, I participated in the community, performed and won art awards through the 4-H, participated as a statistician for football and basketball, and ran in track and field. I won a small scholarship to study art at Truman State University (then called Northeast Missouri State University) and graduated with a B.A. in art. The job market suffered in the early 1990s, and I was accepted into The Ohio State University Art History Department graduate school. I studied American Art, Contemporary Art, and Medieval Art. My scholarship focused on feminism and social justice.
After receiving an M.A. in Art History, I worked as a reference assistant to librarians at Columbus Libraries. I also trained in and started a stained-glass business and worked part-time at the Met Store, where I met my first stained-glass client. I created a few stained-glass windows in Columbus and Atlanta, Georgia.
My career took me to Atlanta, where I was hired to work in Emory University’s Image Library. This job was a source of inspiration, leading me to create artwork centered around common shapes in artworks worldwide. This experience culminated in the launch of my exhibition, ‘Sources,’ at the Bluemilk Group. My time at Emory was enriched by the guidance of exceptional art teachers and the opportunity to attend science lectures. My work was recognized and included in the ‘Shared Frontiers: Science and Art’ group show at Schatten Gallery, Emory University.
This artwork was part of my application to Pratt Institute. I was admitted to Pratt’s Graduate Arts and Georgia State’s Web Design programs. Not realizing I was risking my marriage, I chose Pratt and moved to Brooklyn in August 2001, and 9-11 changed New York City. The Pratt Institute graduate program allowed me to meet top professional artists, and through an introduction, I worked at a Soho art gallery for several months. A well-known art critic and writer attended my graduate art show but could not understand why I painted pigeons. Many artists painted animals after 9-11 as a refuge from trauma. For me, pigeons symbolize security and community.
I met my husband Jonathan then, in Greenwich Village while he was visiting friends. He sincerely appreciated art partly because of his mother’s work; we hit it off from the first day. He and our families have always supported my exploration of the arts; I am very grateful for familial support in creating art and promoting the arts today.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Though it seems inevitable looking back, and it’s easy now to see the through-lines of social justice, feminism, art history, and visual art explorations, none of where I stand today was guaranteed. I’ve applied for art grants to no avail; I’ve applied for curatorial jobs in my field of study and college teaching jobs based on my teaching experiences and have yet to be interviewed for them. When my children were young, they loved acting and applied for many parts but were unaware of the rejection involved; this is also true for artists. We have to take rejection in stride. Thousands of artists apply for grants, exhibitions, and jobs; that’s how it is. One of my mentors at Pratt was Gillian Jagger, a large-scale, naturalistic sculptor; she taught me not to follow art trends and to keep my “eye on the ball” or personal artistic development.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I have a broad skill set in the visual arts. Before going to Pratt (which provided experience in printing, carpentry, electricity, and welding), I stretched and created paintings, published illustrations, showed ceramics, and installed stained glass. I have also created art installations and conceptual artworks, and today, I have extensive experience curating and installing art exhibitions.
In my artwork, I am most proud of commissioned portraits, especially the one of my pregnant client and her horses, and reproductions I’ve done of Mondrian’s “Large Red” on 3-D recycled Styrofoam and a 1/4-size reproduction of Picasso’s “Guernica” in oil.
Today, I create oil portraits of people and animals and recycle Styrofoam into abstract and colorful artworks.
Any big plans?
My plans for the future include curating an art exhibition of significant national and local artists produced by the artHYPE Foundation in TAG’s Sky Gallery on August 9, 2024. I have an exhibition called “Portraits of Men” in Studio 03 at The Artists Gallery (TAG) through July 15th, 2024. I am still seeking a college teaching job. I also want to begin a PhD program and write a monograph on the life and art of Afrofuturist painter, muralist, and musician Walt Wali Neil (represented by the artHYPE Foundation).
Pricing:
- Portraits by Wren Sarrow, beginning at $800
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sarrowstudio.com
- Instagram: @wrensarrow
- Facebook: @sarrowstudio
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wrensarrow/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@arthypenow/
