CPC Small Print Show: Sarah Kaiser

This blog is part of a series of interviews of participating artists / printmakers in the Chicago Printmakers Collaborative Small Print Show.

Born in Northern Kentucky and having lived in many different states while growing up, Sarah Kaiser currently lives and works in Chicago. She has a BFA in painting and printmaking from Colorado State University, and an MA in art history and an MFA in painting from the University of Chicago. Her art includes screen printing and etching, and she sometimes combines techniques to enhance colors and textures -- printing on collaged elements (chine-collé) or painting or drawing on prints.

Sarah Kaiser. Emergency Series, #8. 2008.
Oil painted silkscreen, 8" x 11".

"Emergency Series is from an Emergency Procedures pamphlet I took from the seat pocket of an airplane last year. This screen print illustrates my interest in banal and detached figures; particularly, such images are mass produced with the intent of pacifying the public, and creating the illusion of security. In real life, a person in this situation would never appear so serene, but it was an opportunity to play with the post 9-11 fears of flying as well as the power of images to pacify the public. "

Sarah Kaiser. Phrasal Verb Chickens. 2008.
Etching with chine-collé, 6" x 8".

"The image Phrasal Verb Chickens was inspired by teaching ESL. Before I taught art, I taught English. When I taught a lesson on Phrasal Verbs, which are two-or three-word verb phrases, the students thought that 'chicken out' was funny. They told me other idioms in Spanish, such as a Mono con cuchillo (Monkey with a Knife). In Spanish, this means a person with a credit card. The lesson got really interesting when we approached all of the 'get' verbs -- get off, get out, get on, get up, etc. One of the students knew the alternative get off' meaning that pertains to masturbation...so I had to explain the concept to the rest of the students. Needless to say, it was a bit awkward to do so."

Sarah's work is on display at Framingmode Gallery in Chicago and at the American Academy of Art, where she teaches. Her recent exhibitions include: Art From the Edge: an AIDS Benefit, New York, December, 2008; Group Show, Framingmode Gallery, Chicago, 2008; Chicago Art Open, The Merchandise Mart, Chicago, 2008; Emerging Artist Exhibit, Morpho Gallery, Chicago, 2008; Faster, Cheaper, Bolder, Silkscreen works on objects, fabric and paper, Hyde Park Art Center, Chicago, 2008; Tie One On, A Benefit Auction to Support Art Education at Lillstreet Art Center, Chicago, 2008; Subject/Object, American Academy of Art, Chicago, 2007; Corporate Gallery Artist Exhibit, Northwest Cultural Council, Rolling Meadows, IL, 2007; The Child in You, Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, IL, 2007; Moving On, Mon Amour, ARC Gallery, Chicago, IL, 2007.

For more information on Sarah and her art, go to http://sarah-kaiser.com/.