ár scéal: our story

 

Sarah Dillon explores memory and change. Place, as a multifaceted sensibility, functions as a catalyst for art-making that delves into the depths of self-reflection, social analysis, international issues, politics and history, and offers up an excellent basis for creativity as well as human interaction. 

 

As a visual artist, Sarah contemplates time, place and change and ultimately explore what it is to be present. 

During the summer of 2024, Sarah traveled to Ireland to explore nostalgia for the unknown. Namely, what it is and what it means to identify as Irish-American.

 

“The 200-year present is a term coined by peace research pioneer & sociologist Elise Boulding. It describes a way thinking of the fleeting present moment with full awareness of the effects of past actions and of our present actions on the future.” 

                                        - The Meta Center for Nonviolence

 

During the residency, Sarah focused on the impact of time and distance on the identity-shaping that occurs as connections erode, family stories fade and new ones are made. She created a new body of artwork to accompany a documentary that excavates the past, lives in the moment and contemplates the future with consideration for the restorative qualities of art. Ars longa, vita brevis.