"...no one in my family were artists per se but everybody made things. And we would all make projects. My mother would get very enthusiastic...my mom made a lot of clothing...she taught me how to embroider, and that is something that I have still included and carry on in my work, I love that it's so portable... "
-Miriam Schaer
Miriam Schaer is a master of improv.
Schaer lives a life in service to art and friendship. Her work incorporates printmaking, bookmaking, dolls, and, more recently, knitting.
Pivoting is how Schaer has worked as an independent artist - often diving into the unknown and creating what she calls "lucky breaks."
But I am convinced that because Schaer was willing to take risks, and trust that all would work out....it has.
I met Schaer when she was a keynote speaker at the Kutztown Art Education conference way back in November 2013. After her lecture, I ran to the lectern to meet her. We've been in touch, on and off, ever since...
Discover Schaer's provocative embroidered work...
I connected to Schaer's
Babies (Not) On Board: The Last Prejudice? a series that explores the experiences of married women who do not have children.
Schaer's embroidery skills shine in these pieces that reveal how the product of women's loins
often overshadows any of their intellectual or artistic achievements.
Many of the most accomplished women - Virginia Woolf included -
had to deal with why they didn't have kids - a society blinded to their artistic genius!
Schaer has dealt with "childlessness" since her marriage.
She took what could've become bitterness or anger - and transformed it into a provocative, sublime art.
What astounds me is how people sometimes don't think at all about a couple's particular circumstances regarding
having/not having children... it's a choice, or it's a painful physical reality that denies them
fertility.
In this episode, we discuss:
- her transition from musician to visual artist
- how her high school guidance counselor tried to derail her art career
- how her relationship with NYC's Center for Book Arts has been central to her evolution
- the importance of mentoring her students, both art and non-art majors
Join Miriam Schaer and me as we talk about her life, family - and her improv way of life...
Find Schaer at miriamschaer.com