In the Studio
Sarah Kathryn Bean - 2019
About the Work
My paintings are about the deep connection I have with animals and the natural world around me. I live and work in Elgin, a small historic railroad stop in what is known as Southern Arizona’s Mountain Empire.
My subjects are often my neighbors: the horses, longhorns, pronghorn, jackrabbits and other beings who share the grasslands of Elgin. I also paint the amazingly diverse birds of the surrounding Sky Islands and those from travels.
My paintings are portraits in the truest sense. I do not paint my animals only as beautiful Western scenery, but as deeply felt individuals. In my lifelong study of art history, I was always drawn to the great animal portraiture of past centuries, where skillful artists captured that vast soulfulness in the sensitive rendering of a creature’s eye. I am interested in the interior lives of other sentient beings, and find a spiritual sustenance in looking beyond our human filters.
My animals are fellow Earth travelers, and sometimes dear friends. My paintings are poems of wonder and gratitude for their existence.
Sarah Kathryn Bean
'How do you know but ev'ry Bird that cuts the airy way, Is an immense world of delight, clos'd by your senses five?' - William Blake
Sarah Bean grew up in Indiana, and studied fine arts at Indiana University. She discovered the beauty of Arizona in 1993, when she relocated to complete her Master of Fine Arts at the University of Arizona. Her work has been represented in juried and solo exhibitions both locally and nationally. Sarah teaches painting and drawing at Cochise College.