Artist Spotlight: Sarah Lynne Hunter

"Being an artist means forever healing your own wounds while at the same time endlessly exposing them."

Annette Messager

Our next Artist Spotlight is dedicated to the talented and versatile SWA Member artist Sarah Lynne Hunter. Sarah earned her degree in Apparel Design and Fine Art from Seattle Pacific University, and is based in Vancouver, Washington where she lives with her husband, three children, and cats, and teaches art classes part-time.

As an artist for over 20 years, she’s worked across many media: charcoal, oil, watercolor, color pencils, printmaking, fiber, and metal arts, to name just a few. Currently, she’s focusing on figurative oil paintings and high-vibration jewelry and exploring themes of femininity and mental health. Her website outlines her current inspirations best:

“I juxtapose socio-cultural ideas of femininity and female identity found in history, literature, and religion with the experiences of the 21st-century woman, and often include personal imagery within my work. I also explore ideas pertaining to mental health and believe that personal expression through art can be a very meaningful and healing form of therapy.”

Sarah’s work is unapologetic and bold, and you can immediately sense her dedication to expressing a powerful and authentic 21st-century woman. To explore this, her paintings are chock-full of diverse references including Catholic and Hindu imagery, psychological concepts, Latin phrases, and more. Inspired by what words alone can’t capture, Sarah often leans into visual symbolism and expressionist brushstrokes, asking the viewer to take a moment to dwell on their reactions. Recently, she’s been enjoying doing a deep dive into color by experimenting with neon acrylics as underpaintings for oil paintings, a technique in which she achieves a rich saturation and luminosity.

In Sarah’s gallery on her website, she includes some great writing that guides the viewer into some of the deeper symbology and motivations—of course, this writing by the artist is absolutely worth a read to gain some insight into the many subtle references in her work. For example, in False Dichotomy, she paints two open-faced palms each cradling an origami crane, surrounded by scribbled words and another bird above—she deciphers some of the psychological concepts and personal imagery that inform the work. All of these shapes are formed with vibrant pigment, adding to its powerful feel.

We want to highlight the incredible versatility of her portfolio. In addition to her two-dimensional work, she makes copper and sterling jewelry—including necklaces, earrings, and bracelets—with semi-precious gemstones. She has sold her work locally at the Phoenix Rising Gallery, online on her Etsy shop, and in-person vendor events.

Lastly, you can also see her mural-in-progress in Downtown Vancouver at The Difference, a boutique clothing store. Read more about her mural work in this article in Vancouver Family Magazine .

You can see Sarah’s work on Instagram, Facebook, and her website (all under the name A Little Grey Bird) in addition to many places in-person—including the upcoming Night Market in Vancouver on February 11th. Connect with Sarah on her favorite social media channels below for more information about her art and inquiries about commissions!

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