What Are You Working On Now? Mary Sabo
Mary Sabo, test tube, colored pencil on paper, MDF board, found image, wood, resin, 2023.
What are you working on now? is a Couch in the Desert series where we ask artists what they are making and thinking about in and outside the studio.
Collecting and collaging images is a big part of my research and process. I have no formal training in photography, and I have never considered it to be a crucial aspect of my art practice. However, I’ve been realizing how much I utilize it and how it shapes the rest of my work. I’m always on the lookout for good shapes. There are so many good shapes out there waiting to be discovered. An old sign, a shadow, an off-putting sconce, a texture on a rock, and my favorite- a weird window. I recently combed through my archive of photos for the windows that have caught my attention throughout the years.
From near and far, framed moments, simultaneously inviting me in and keeping me at a distance.
Here are a few of my favorite windows, collaged together. Some of them are from important places and phases in my life, and others I can’t quite recall.
Windows pop up a lot in my drawings, paintings and sculptures. Inventing new windows becomes a sort of proxy for inventing new ways of seeing, and helps to satisfy my interest in voyeurism. I’ve been investigating ways to merge my sculptural tendencies with two dimensional, smaller works. This new drawing features a miniature handcrafted (super-glued) wooden window.
Mary Sabo, miniature wooden window.
Another image source that’s been keeping me busy is old magazine scans. I’ll add in drawings and other shapes from undisclosed sources.
I’ll continue to seek out new windows, old life insurance ads, take pamphlets from strangers, and explore the scale of expanding and contracting worlds within our current context.
Mary Sabo, crucible, digital collage, 2023.
Mary Sabo is a visual artist and arts administrator living and working in Las Vegas, Nevada. She works in various modes, including drawing, painting, sculpture and installation. Her interests/inspirations include dirt, rituals, and surrealism. Mary graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas as a sculpture BFA student, and has shown work and participated in projects throughout the Mojave desert and beyond.
See more of Mary’s work on her website and on Instagram.
All images courtesy of the artist.
Posted and published by Ellie Rush on November 15, 2023