“You have to give yourself over to being in the process itself.
If you have an ideal image in mind, you’re going to be frustrated.”
Interested in collaborating with Sabraw on future work? The artist invites inquiries at sabraw@ohio.edu.
J oh n sa b r aw
that environmental themes have crept into her recent work: a series on natural disasters that allude to pollution, as well as a painting that ponders recent mass deaths of animals in nature. Purje also admires Sabraw’s commitment to carbon-neutral art, including his quest to avoid creating waste in the studio. “I’m more mindful of this now,” she says. “I don’t know if I’m to the extreme that he is, but I’m trying to get there.” Sabraw not only celebrates science and the environment in his art, but works in a scientific manner as well, Purje adds. “He sets up his paintings like an experiment—he’s not sure what will happen,” she says. “He taught me that you shouldn’t be afraid to fail.” The connection is no coincidence, as Sabraw’s art stems from a longtime love of science and nature. He created his early work at Ohio University from the “perspective of a romantic activist: finding beauty in the Earth and environs, but doing anything I could to change things for the better,” he recalls. A collaboration with university
astrophysicists Tom Statler and Mangala Sharma on two projects, Scale and Planet Panorama, both designed give the general public an appreciation of the size of the universe, opened his eyes to how much humans are interconnected to each other, as well as to the environment. “This instilled a more focused sense of responsibility for our fragile existence,” he says. “It became clear to me that sustainability was the most egalitarian avenue for broadly effective improvement for all of us.” His research for Scale introduced him to other related areas of scientific study “that collectively led to my thought process that gave birth to Chroma and in some measure restored my romantic ideals as well,” he says. Chroma’s allusions to the natural phenomena on Earth now have sparked discussions with scholars in the life sciences, including plant biologists who study algae, as well as astronomers at planetariums. Sabraw thrives on making these connections between art, science, engineering, activism, and the environment. It’s his Unified Theory come to life.
5
A l lu v i u m : E 5
Chroma painting Mixed media on aluminum composite panel, 24x24 inches
.33