PHOTOGRAPHY
COLLAGE
FILM & VIDEO
Video works:
(Exhibited as a continuous loop)
(Exhibited as a continuous loop)
Video documentation of Installations:
Narrative Shorts
STATEMENT
I seek to occupy that fine line between fiction and reality and question our ability to discern between the two. Romanian director Andrei Serban once said, theater “does not really happen on the stage. It happens in the audience’s head.” I see the suspension of disbelief as a universally shared version of assimilation. My own immigrant experience informs the way I see the world. I grew up adept at fitting in, speaking in two different accents, straddling two distinct cultures. I make works that are platforms for narrative, with significant parts omitted, creating adaptable plot holes for the audience to fill in.
Working across a wide range of mediums including installation, photography, video, film, and collage, I fabricate cinematic spaces in which a fragment of a story is inferred. My work employs iconic imagery including things like floods, ruins, shipwrecks, and ghost towns. These fictional spaces draw from the tropes of theatrical sets, 30-second commercial spots, and Hollywood classics to deconstruct narrative storytelling. I investigate the tensions between fictions and realities, the still and moving image, and the hazy mis-rememberings of personal vs. artificial memories. Was it a memory from my childhood, or am I just recalling a scene from a movie?
BIO
Sarah O Donnell (born in Ireland, lives and works in USA) works in a range of media including film, video, installation, photography, and sculpture. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Sculpture from the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, PA in 2007, where she received the Edith Weil Hecht Memorial Award in Sculpture.
After finishing her undergraduate studies, O Donnell worked in a range of roles on independent short and feature-length films including positions as Art Director, and Production Designer, eventually producing and directing her own narrative short films.She received a full fellowship to earn her Master of Fine Arts degree in Sculpture from The Ohio State University in 2012. In the summer of 2012, she received a full fellowship to attend a month-long residency at the Vermont Studio Center and in 2014 she was awarded a three-month residency at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts.
O Donnell has exhibited her work in venues such as The Bronx Museum of the Arts, The BYU Museum of Art in Provo, UT, Burlington City Arts in Burlington, VT, the Urban Art Space in Columbus, OH, the Institute of Contemporary Art in Philadelphia, PA, the Icebox Project Space at the Crane Arts in Philadelphia as well as several alternative gallery spaces and performance venues in the Philadelphia and Baltimore areas. O Donnell's work is included in several private collections, including the Duncan collection of Nebraska.
O Donnell was a founding partner with Abbey Meaker of Overnight Projects, a nomadic artist-run exhibition program based out of Burlington, VT that ran from 2015 to 2019.
CV
Education
2012 MFA Sculpture, The Ohio State University
2007 BFA Sculpture, Tyler School of Art, Temple University
Selected Exhibitions
*denotes solo exhibition
2022 As We Tilt Toward the Sun, AVA Gallery, Lebanon, NH
2018 From Away, site-specific installation in a former motel, South Hero, VT
2017 *No Ghost, Francis Colburn Gallery, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT
2015 Make Moran, group exhibition, Karma Birdhouse Gallery, Burlington, VT
2015 An Order, site-specific installations in a former orphanage at Burlington College, Burlington, VT
2015 Bronx Calling, AIM Biennial, The Bronx Museum of Art, Bronx, NY
2015 Ditch Projects/ Third Meaning, Portland, OR (in collaboration with Mike Calway-Fagen)
2015 State Parks, University San Diego Art Gallery, San Diego, CA
2014 *The Light is the Source of the Land, exhibition and installation, BYU Museum of Art, Provo, Utah
2013 *A Visible Night, Burlington City Arts, Burlington VT with site-specific light installation in Burlington’s Moran Plant
2013 *Sarah O Donnell, Upstairs at West Branch, Stowe, VT
2012 NextWave, Master of Fine Art Thesis Exhibition, Urban Art Space, The Ohio State University
2012 Annual Fergus Scholarship Exhibition, Hopkins Gallery, The Ohio State University2011 Recent Arrivals, Hopkins Gallery, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
2011 Annual Fergus Scholarship Exhibition, Hopkins Gallery, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH2010 It's Who You Know, Invitational Exhibition, Projects Gallery, Philadelphia
2010 We're All Connected, Invitational Exhibition, 40th Street AIR space, Philadelphia
2010 Parts & Labor, Annex Gallery, Baltimore, MD. Collaborative performance with Elizabeth Thamm
2010 Annual Mummer's New Year's Day Parade, Performed with Vaudevillains Brigade, Philadelphia2009 Art Dash, Invitational Exhibition, Little Berlin Gallery, Philadelphia
2009 Annual Open Video Call, Juried Exhibition of Video Artists, Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia
2009 Offerings, Collaborative Exhibition, Little Berlin Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2009 Victory for Tyler, Juried Exhibition, IceBox Project Space, Philadelphia PA2008 *Post Production, Little Berlin Gallery, Philadelphia PA
2008 Restless Discontent, My House Gallery, Philadelphia PA2007 HausWerk, Site-Specific Collaboration with Andrew Brehm, Christakis House, Paoli, PA
2007 Like Sardines, Senior Sculpture Exhibition, Tyler Gallery, Elkins Park, PA
2007 I’ll Be Around, BFA Thesis Exhibition, Tyler Hall, Elkins Park PA
2007 Sasoseven, Penrose Gallery, Elkins Park, PA
2007 We Grew Up On TeeVee, Tyler Gallery. Elkins Park, PA
2007 Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Tyler Gallery, Elkins Park, PA2006 Annual Student Exhibition, Temple Gallery, Rome, Italy
Residencies & Fellowships
2018 Vermont Studio Center, Vermont Week, Johnson, VT
2015 MacDowell Colony Fellowship, Peterborough, NH (Fellowship awarded but unable to attend)
2014, Finalist, Fine Arts Work Center, Provincetown, MA
2014 Bemis Center for Contemporary Art, three-month residency, Omaha, NE
2013 Vermont Studio Center, Vermont Week, Johnson, VT2012 Full Fellowship awarded by the David Bermant Foundation, The Vermont Studio Center, Johnson VT
2010 University Fellowship, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
Lectures/ Visiting Artist/ Juror
2019 Juror, "Great Streets Public Art", organized by BCA, Burlington, VT
2019 Panelist, "Business of Art" Panel Discussion, Generator, Burlington, VT
2018 Gallery Lecture, University of Vermont
2017 Visiting Artist Lecture, University of Iowa
2016 Guest Speaker, Vermont Preservation Trust, Waterbury VT
2015 Visiting Artist Lecture, The University of Vermont, Burlington, VT
2015 PechaKucha Night, Fleming Museum of Art, Burlington, VT
2014 Visiting Artist Lecture, Bemis Center for Contemporary Art, Omaha, NE
2014 Visiting Artist Lecture, University of Indiana Bloomington
2013 Visiting Artist Lecture Series, Brigham Young University, Provo UT
2008 Post-Production Gallery Talk with Matthew Suib and Nadia Hironaka, Little Berlin Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Honors & Awards
2015 The Bronx Museum of Art, Artist in the Marketplace program participant
2015 Annual Fergus Memorial Scholarship Award, The Ohio State University
2011 Graduate Research Grant, The Ohio State University, Dept. of Arts
& Humanities
2011 Dedalus Foundation, Master of Fine Arts Fellowship Nominee
2011 Annual Fergus Memorial Scholarship Award, The Ohio State University2009 Best Local Film, Harrisburg Artsfest Film Festival. Awarded to short-film, “Imprint”
2008 Edith Weil Hecht Memorial Award in Sculpture, Tyler School of ArtPress & Publications
2015 "Overnight Projects Artists Find Their Place", Rachel Elizabeth Jones, Seven Days, Dec. 9, 2015
"Plant With a Plan: At the South End Art Hop, Artists Advocate for the Moran", Sadie Williams, Seven Days, Sept 9, 2015
"Local Artists Bring New Life to Former Burlington Orphanage", Sadie Williams, Seven Days, August 5, 2015
"Art Pops Up at Burlington College", Ric Kasini Kadour, Art Map Burlington, August 3, 2015
"Bronx Museum Showcases (and Helps) Emerging Artists", New York Times, July 10, 2015
"Artists respond to call from the Bronx", Victoria Stapley-Brown, The Art Newspaper, 13 July 2015
2014 “Sarah O Donnell's first museum exhibition opens at BYU's Museum of Art”, Artdailiy.org, April 24, 2014
“Light-Based Artist Sarah O Donnell’s Ghostly Work on View at BYU”, Eric Olsen, America’s Most Haunted, April 7, 2014
2013 “Sarah O Donnell: A Visible Night” Meg Brazill, Art New England Magazine November/ December 2013
“Fan Mail: Sarah O Donnell” A. Will Brown, Daily Serving October 10, 2013
“Beautiful Ruin”, Megan James, Seven Days, Sept. 11, 2013
“A Visible Night by Sarah O Donnell”, Amandas Ong, Elephant Magazine, Sept 04, 2013
“Summer exhibitions at Burlington City Arts expand beyond gallery walls to
Burlington's Moran Plant” Artdaily.org, August 29, 2013“Opening Reception: Sam Falls and Sarah O Donnell”, Vermont Art Guide
“Art Installation Lights Up Moran Plant”, David Charns, WPTZ News Burlington, July 31
“Light Show Brightens Up Burlington’s Gloomy Moran Plant”, Kevin J. Kelley, Seven Days July 24, 2013
“Art Exhibit Lights Up Old Moran Plant”, Deanna Lablanc, WCAX News Burlington, July 22, 2013
“Post #4, Hyde Park, VT: Sarah O Donnell (Artist)”, Concept Plus Object blog
Invited to write by guest blogger, Mike Calway-Fagen, February 16, 20132008 “Post Production”, Roberta Fallon and Libby Rosof, Philadelphia Artblog, June 22, 2008
2007 “For students, home is where the art is,” Lini S. Kadaba, Philadelphia Inquirer,
December 17, 2007“Hauswerk” Roberta Fallon and Libby Rosof, Philadelphia Artblog, December 19, 2007
“Art students show that hard ‘werk’ pays off in Paoli”, Rachel Perry, Main Line Life, December 11, 2007
Catalogs
2015 "Bronx Calling", AIM Biennial Catalog, Bronx Museum of the Arts, Bronx, NY
2013 "NextWave: Master of Fine Art Thesis Exhibition" catalog, Urban Art Space, The Ohio State University
Annual Fergus Scholarship exhibition Catalog, Hopkins Gallery, The Ohio State University2007 "Like Sardines" exhibition catalog, Senior Sculpture Exhibition, Tyler Gallery, Elkins Park PA
HausWerk Group exhibition catalog, Christakis House, Paoli, PA
Tyler School of Art Admissions Catalog 2007-2008, Sculpture Portfolio
Sasoseven Group Exhibition CatalogCuratorial
2017: Spurious Brood, Outdoor installation of 200 Timex Watches in the tree branches of Burlington's City Hall Park by Virginia-based Christopher Mahonski, Burlington, Vermont.
2017: Fluorescent Light in Vacant Storefront, A site-specific light installation by Vermont-based artist Chris Jeffrey, Winooski, Vermont
2016: Modes of Conduction, Site-specific installations by Germany-based artists Vesko Goesel, Peter Miller, and Viktoria Strecker at the Moran Plant, Burlington, Vermont.
2016: Conceal/Reveal, Interactive, video-based installation by Vermont-based artists Rebecca Weisman and Dana Heffern, Burlington, Vermont.
2016: Triangle, Circle, Square, Three-channel video installation by NYC-based artists Andrew Brehm and Jennifer Lauren Smith, Burlington, VermontCONTACT
email: info@sarahodonnell.com
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© Sarah O Donnell