Sarah Heitmeyer is a ceramic artist specializing in decorative wall tile. Her current work is based in emulating a calming, beautiful moment for viewers. Sarah received national recognition through an emerging artist award from the National Council on Education of the Ceramic Arts in 2019.
She received her MFA at the State University of New York at New Paltz and BFA from Alfred University. She completed a post baccalaureate program at Colorado State University, residencies at Flower City Pottery in Rochester, NY and the Wellsville Creative Arts Center in Wellsville, NY, and an internship at Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass Village, CO.
Sarah exhibits her work nationally, including at The Clay Studio in Philadelphia, PA, Radius Gallery in Missoula, MT, the Women's Studio Workshop in Rosendale, NY, the Page Bond Gallery in Richmond, VA, the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, MT, the Dorsky Museum of Art in New Paltz, NY, and Pewabic Tile in Detroit, MI, Carbondale Clay Center in Carbondale CO, and Peekskill Clay Studios in Peekskill NY.
She has worked for ceramic studios such as KleinReid, Kala Stein Design, ModCraft Tile, and Fall Kill Creative Works, as well as in digital design and fabrication labs such as the Hudson Valley Additive Manufacturing Center and Polich Tallix.
She is an adjunct professor at SUNY New Paltz teaching computer aided design and works in her studio in Fishkill, NY.
Statement
“I return to the water’s edge to feel my mind empty before me, releasing a swell of intentions to drift and find resonance with the tide. Water gives form to energy we cannot see; the wind, the tide or an applied force that grows and reflects. The movement gives my eye something to focus on, while my mind takes a breath.”
Sarah recreates these moments through ceramic wall tile. This reminds her of what we seek in sanctuaries; a quiet space to process and consolidate thoughts, step out of our habitual norm to reflect and find hope.
Sarah is fascinated with applying logic to rippling currents in water. The ornamental design of tile, including repetition and symmetry, merged with the realism of photography creates depth and she plays with how much pattern intersects our perception of an image. Pattern functions as a vehicle through space, offering markers for perception and revealing a subliminal tendency to seek order and repetition, which is elusive in nature.
To capture these moments, she uses digital, craft, and studio production based techniques. Digital technologies’ potential for photo realism offers a level of exactitude not commonly found in hand made objects. This invites the viewer closer to find intangible moments frozen in ceramic materials. Her processes of computer-aided design, mold making, press molding, slip casting, and glaze formulation allows her to offer a quiet, immense moment to find yourself within.
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