Stoop Kids

Issue 2 is coming April 17th.

Get to know Sarah Sickles. The Milwaukee based artist is currently finishing up her two week takeover of our Instagram. Before she finishes on Sunday we asked her a few question about her practice. 

You originally were a Photography major but then switched to Integrated Studio Arts. What changed your mind?

I came to MIAD to study photography. In high school, I never had any art education besides taking a photography class. I had no idea of all of my options! After taking classes freshman year and experimenting in areas like printmaking, water color, and drawing, I decided that a photography major was too limiting for me. I had become exposed to theory and concept and that is addressed more in the Integrated Studio Arts major. This is the realm that my work takes hold in. I still use photography, and I often consider it a different practice than my drawing or installation work. 

How was studying in New York last semester? Tell us a little about your residency.

From May - December 2014 I studied in New York City. During the summer I had two internships, one with Catalina Kulczar Photography and another with her partner design business, La Moutique. It was a different experience, and it allowed me to become acclimated with the city before starting my residency program in August. The New York Studio Residency program was the most amazing thing I have ever done. It benefitted my work in countless ways. We had three seminars a week in which we would discuss current events in the art world, meet with visiting artists, and that sort of thing. We had studio visits with SVA staff and visiting artists every week, and most importantly, we worked on things we wanted to work on. There were 15 students in the program from art institutions all around the US. We became a close group of friends, collaborating, critiquing, and hanging out together. This time allowed me to explore myself and my artwork in ways that I was never allowed to do at school with class assignments. I learned how to balance a studio practice with classes, a part time job, navigating the city, and having a social life. I would recommend it to everyone.

Speaking of New York, we saw that you met Daniel Radcliffe in NYC. How the heck did that happen?

Daniel Radcliffe! I love him. We are obviously dating. During my fourth week in New York I was on my way to a club in Midtown, walking through the theatre district where Daniel was performing in a Broadway production. We saw a gaggle of girls waiting outside this theatre that had his face plastered all over it. Screaming erupted and I don't know what came over me, but I sprinted through traffic to get to the other side of the street and push my way to the front of the crowd. He came up to me and asked if I wanted to take a photo, took my phone and took two selfies with me. So my natural response was to start crying. Right in front of him. Talk about embarrassing. But it was basically the best moment of my life.

What do you plan on doing after you graduate from MIAD? Do you want to stay in Milwaukee?

I don't have any official plans right after graduation, but I would like to move back to New York. There's something about that city that is so energetic. I would love to work at an art publication or do an artist residency in France. I'm pretty open to different opportunities!

What inspires you to make art?

I have a lot of inspirations, but I'm not sure that they inspire me to make art. It feels like a natural thing that I have to do. I can't imagine not creating in some way. I feel like its my response to things that happen around me. People are what influence my work the most, directly or indirectly. I just get this feeling of a need to create, and I do.