Introducing the art of Sarah Hylton (Interview)

SARAH HYLTON

DESTIG TORONTO - ART | DESIGN | TRAVEL - ISSUE 09 / JANUARY 2021

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"HOW MARVELOUS THAT THEY BROUGHT FORTH SUCH MAGNIFICIENCE FROM THEIR BRUSHES AND CHISELS." - ANONYMOUS

"Because I want to be of benefit to sentient beings, I entrain to be a hollow bone, a channel, for beneficent beings. I believe the Spirit of some of my paintings are not of me, but are of energy creating through me and communication from these multidimensional realms."

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Sarah is an Expressive Artist and Arts Facilitator

working on and place it at the foot of my bed. I will stare

specializing in a whole person-centered approach for

into it, allowing it to inform me before I fall asleep and

creating art. She is an avid painter, dancer and

when I arise. I will notice what works and where to re-

ceramic sculptor and can often be found dancing

enter the painting. Sometimes I will “dream into” the

while painting. Sarah’s paintings have been featured

painting for months at a time. Always, I will see the Spirit

in galleries, juried exhibits and are in private

of the painting emerge and evolve. This may mean I

collections.

“sacrifice” an aspect of the painting I have previously held as precious, in order to authentically move forward. I let

You described painting as an experience of art as a

the process of painting open a channel of curiosity and

dream. Please explain.

play that my own hubris is diminished by.

I experience painting as accessing and being immersed in the language of the unconscious. becomes

a

communication

symbolic with

The process

representation non-ordinary

of

the

realms

that

What is Depth Hypnosis and how has it affected your creativity?

The Depth Hypnosis discipline was developed by Isa

influence waking consciousness. I respond to personal

Gucchiardi,

Ph.D.

and

Founding

Director

of

the

inquiry, what is most relevant to my development of

Foundation of the Sacred Stream. Depth Hypnosis

consciousness. A painting can have many layered

integrates the modalities of Transpersonal. I had been

paintings within it. Regularly, I will take what I am

gifted a workshop with Isa after a series of experiences,

"I experience painting as accessing and being immersed in the language of the unconscious.

The process becomes a symbolic representation of the communication with nonordinary realms that influence waking consciousness."

both traumatic and initiatory in nature.

premise that the earth and all biological

Shortly after this workshop, I faced fire

life are one being, contemporarily called

calamity and was displaced from my home

Gaia. In this orientation, human beings

for several years. I continued training as a

are biologically part of Gaia. Therefore,

Depth

Applied

our social restoration and interspecies

Shamanic Practitioner, while addressing

cooperation is essential to the over-all life

personal symptoms of Post-Traumatic

force of the Being of Gaia and our quality

Stress Disorder. In the process of healing

of life as human beings. In observing

and deepening my experience with

nature we can bear witness to the

altered states, my life force became

interspecies cooperation

Hypnotherapist

and

stronger

and

more

organized.

capacity

to

hold

power

in

My a

An example of my artistic work in

compassionate way has increased. My

permaculture is a mural titled the Three

creativity and life force are inseparable. I

Sisters, installed in the Ceres Project

am more able to follow my joy in being

Garden.

creative and not be derailed by my own

interdependence of all sentient beings,

suffering.

from starlight to salmon, and is essentially an

The

mural

acknowledgement

illustrates

of

the

indigenous

Tell us about your work in Permaculture

wisdom, as told in the story of the Three

Design.

Sisters. As a community youth art project,

Permaculture is essentially a style of land

the painting process brought together

stewardship and management, and social

youth from various different cultural and

interaction based on biomimicry. We see

socioeconomic backgrounds participating

this illustrated historically in indigenous

at the Ceres Project Garden and S.A.Y.

practices. Permaculture includes the

Dream Center. People of all ages are able

to sit in the garden, as well as help cultivate organic food to be used in making meals for people with significant health challenges. S.A.Y. Dream Center is a multi-service housing campus for homeless youth. The mural is dedicated to the indigenous Miwok and Pomo nations of the region.

You are an Applied Shamanism Practitioner; how does this influence your painting?

As a practitioner, I have non-ordinary experiences, and have become more agile and disciplined in moving between dimensions of reality and interacting with nonordinary beings. Because I want to be of benefit to sentient beings, I entrain to be a hollow bone, a channel, for beneficent beings. I believe the Spirit of some of my paintings are not of me, but are of energy creating through me and communication from these multidimensional realms. The process of painting helps me to consciously integrate these experiences and insights and stabilize in my ground of being.

What does art do for you internally?

Following my inspiration resources me. I am able to develop compassion for my experience. I may wrestle and flail about in what I do not understand, but ultimately, art midwifes me through that.

You have a passion for empowering disadvantaged people. Please share with us some of your efforts.

One arena is co-facilitating Expressive Arts classes for homeless

and

transitionally

housed

community

members. We use a holistic approach, humanistic in nature, in our work with people.

What role can art play in healing the world?

The Arts allow humanity to communicate with one another sincerely and without harm. Through art a

"Following my inspiration resources me. I am able to develop compassion for my experience. I may wrestle and flail about in what I don't understand, but ultimately, art midwifes me through that."

"Art has the capacity to transmute energy and rebuild communities."

person or group can express themselves honestly and go

more

inclusive

paradigm.

Neural

pathways

can

beyond the limitations of society without violence.

regenerate through creative practices. Art has the capacity to transmute energy and rebuild communities

Art can be a social narrative and commentary, as well as

restoratively and sustainably. Art is healing in nature.

sacred and personal in nature. There is a cacophony of

Creative inspiration comes from the drive for life and

dissonance in America that at its base speaks to a lack of

helps us tolerate our differences. Art won’t kill us.

cooperation and abuse of power and resources.

Last year I designed a community project that included Art is creative not destructive. It can deconstruct

an exploration of personal dignity. With shelter-in-place

outmoded and fixated forms of being that have been

restrictions, I adapted the project to include the

normalized, and does so through all the senses. Through

Hexagons of Dignity Tapestry. People of all ages and

art, our sensory gating can expand to include a new and

backgrounds have been participating, creating hexagons

that represent their own experience of personal dignity.

Please tell us the story behind Dreaming W/Bear'.

Where needed, I support fostering this exploration of

I hadn’t painted for myself in raising my son as a single

what personal dignity means. This is an inquiry into how

mother. After being bitten by the bear, I returned to my

we relate to our own essential nature and authenticity.

studio and painted for myself. Initially, I started the

Thus far, people have created narratives of their process

painting as a collage of drawings I had done.

and shared these with me, as well as donating their

The apple with cows and a chicken were an idea for a

hexagons. The inclusive nature of this ongoing project

community project, and I had been playing with tiny bees

allows for many social and economic backgrounds to be

on tracing paper to come up with a stencil design. I began

part of the tapestry. It is my hope that this tapestry

layering paint and thinking about “falling from

continues to grow and that in America, as well as other

innocence” as told with “Eve’s first bite into the apple.”

nations, people can become aware of their own personal

One thing led to another. I saw the woman and bear

dignity, and where lacking, develop positive regard for

within what I had done and then realized I had been lying

themselves and others.

in this position when I had my wild encounter. The fact

most clearly, and thus the painting becomes a visual transmission of energy. I define a good painting as one that keeps communicating to me as well as others long after the final layer of paint is dry. Besides, a painting feels complete when I experience a sense of satisfaction and can lay down my brushes.

Tell us about some of the proudest moments in your art career so far.

I can think of two. One was in my twenties when I was primarily creating lost wax casting jewelry. I was invited to visit a jeweler residing on the second Mesa in Hopi Lands. In his home, we talked for what seemed like hours. I had brought a couple of pieces of my work, in particular a necklace. We talked about the processes of how we implemented our designs and the meaning of our symbolic representations of interfacing with sacred forces. We were engrossed with one another’s methods and the similarities in our finished art compositions. that the bear was embracing the woman, felt like

My host explained the Hopi method of using layers of

reassurance that I would be OK emotionally. While

sheet metal to render their sculptured jewelry. He was

painting Elder, I further explored the nature of my

giving me a teaching and at the same time was clearly

experience; my relationship to bear; and the healing

inspired by my approach and the universal language

process.

informing both of us. After he showed me articles in the magazine Arizona Highways, where he was the featured

Why is it important that the aesthetic value of your art is as great as the message you are conveying?

Thank you for the inherent compliment in this question.

It’s really about working until I feel a sense of satisfaction. As a self-taught artist, I have trained myself to discern what aesthetically works for me and what doesn’t. Because I do not have academic training or purport to have mastery in any particular style or form, I have ample room to experiment and stay fresh. It is in this experiential process that I follow my curiosity.

If something is interesting to me, there is a genuine sense of authenticity in what I am creating. It’s a dialogue with the painting: a call and response.

A painting is more like a relationship than an object. I do not aspire to be like anyone else, but rather to stretch myself beyond my known abilities and to satisfy myself aesthetically. This is often a multi-layered and complex journey. It is, in and of itself, refining by nature.

Sometimes it’s through aesthetic value that the complexity of our human experience is communicated

artist, we went into a sweat lodge in his backyard.

The second time was an installation at the Paul Mahder Gallery in Healdsburg CA. I was working with homeless women and co-facilitating a medicine doll project. The women were invited to create dolls for themselves. I supplied the natural materials and facilitated their personal exploration in designing and making their dolls. The finished dolls were then hung on a wooden armature in the shape of a safety pin. This was during the time that immigrants were fleeing war torn countries and the safety pin was used as a symbol of solidarity. The Paul Mahder Gallery was creating a forum to showcase awareness of homeless issues being faced in Sonoma County. The Medicine Doll/Safety Pin Project was included in this installation. Women from the Expressive Arts classes were also invited to include additional artwork they had created while navigating housing scarcity. The women participating came to the reception, and were so proud to be part of the exhibit and for their artwork to be seen.

At the time, Wosene Kosrof had an extensive installation at the Paul Mahder Gallery. I felt this sense of being part of a bigger purpose. I was honored to facilitate the restorative and healing nature of art for the women and to have them be showcased in a prestigious gallery that simultaneously featured Wosene’s paintings, an artist I admired so deeply.

What drives your inner need to always learn more?

My Dad described the motivation as divine discontent. This concept has stayed with me as I am motivated to develop in consciousness. With art, I try to discern what about an artist’s work I find engaging and why. What does the art communicate to me and what about the artist’s style is engrossing? Though in some ways I might be hampered by not having academic training, I also do not have any restraints of conditioned aesthetics. I can freely experiment. It is in this experiential process that I follow my curiosity and inspiration.

It’s a journey of discovery by trial and error. I do not aspire to be like anyone else, but rather to stretch myself beyond my known abilities and stay fresh. I try to satisfy myself aesthetically and to be in communion with what I experience as Divine Energy in Motion. It is often my intellect that needs to be set aside, so that I can follow the direction of my heart.

At times, this is easier said than done.

"The Arts allow humanity to communicate with one another sincerely and without harm."

Which artists (past and present) have inspired you most?

Anonymous Ancient Indigenous Artists; Chagall; Picasso; Van Gogh, Lilly Yeh; Wosene Kosroff and my son, Levi Hylton.

www.sarahhylton.com