A Window into Sara Carter’s World
We had the privilege of sitting down with Sara Carter, a Houston-born abstract painter now based in Austin, Texas, to explore her journey, life, and career as an artist. Carter’s artistic path began at the San Francisco Art Institute in the early 1990s, and over the years, her work has been widely exhibited across the United States and internationally. Notable solo exhibitions include the De Boer Gallery in Los Angeles and the Monterey Museum of Art in California, among many others. Carter has continued to expand her body of work since her return to Austin in 2017. We spoke in her studio, offering an intimate glimpse into her day-to-day space and the creative energy that fuels her practice. In this conversation, Carter offers candid insights into her inspirations, process, and the evolving chapters of her artistic journey. Austin is lucky to have such a bold, visionary talent contributing to its art community.
Perceiving Frequency
Sara Carter describes her art as deeply connected to energy and the universal flow of life. She believes each piece carries its unique frequency— something beyond how it looks or is perceived. Carter views painting as a way to bridge the spiritual and physical worlds. Her works often explore big themes like life, death, and transformation. For example, Closer to My Home represents a sense of transcendence, while What Dirt Can Do captures the vitality of life on Earth. She often creates pairs of paintings to balance these ideas, reflecting on the contrasts between light and dark or spiritual and earthly realms.
Materials and Their Influence
Sara Carter chooses materials based on the “feeling state” of her inspiration. She sees herself as a conduit for the materials, letting colors and textures “choose” her. These details, such as the interplay of different colors, communicate something beyond their aesthetic appeal. For Carter, the composition and placement of these elements convey messages from the cosmos, even if the viewer only perceives their surface beauty.
Embodying the Psychic State
Every piece Carter creates reflects her “psychic state” (her inner state of mind), which she feels is deeply tied to her identity. For example, her Flowers for Women series shows strength and gentleness, expressing support for women and standing up against injustice. Through her art, Carter channels emotions and comments on the world around her, imagining a future where beauty and freedom are reclaimed.
An Abstract Approach
Abstraction is like another tool in Sara Carter’s art kit, just as important as her canvas and paints. She uses it to depict intangible concepts like space and energy. While representational art focuses on specific forms, abstraction allows her to create open-ended pieces that evoke feelings and encourage us to explore the undefined.
Interpreting Carter’s Work
Carter encourages us to bring our interpretations to her work, though she hopes we recognize that her pieces go beyond mere aesthetics. While she provides insights when asked, she values the diverse subjective responses her art elicits. Even discomfort or dislike is a valid reaction for Carter if the work engages the viewer on some level.
Tools, Color, and Texture
Sara Carter’s creative process follows cycles, shifting between different color palettes like blues and greens or maroons and oranges. Her compositions also alternate between complexity and simplicity. She experiments with stretched and unstretched canvases, paper, and various brushes, frequently using her hands to connect directly with her work. Carter describes her pieces as layered containers—sometimes transparent and revealing, other times opaque and mysterious.
The Next Chapter
Carter continues to expand her representation, emphasizing the importance of strategic networking alongside a dedicated studio practice. She calls this effort “boots on the ground networking,” actively building relationships and inviting others into her artistic world.
Her ultimate goal is institutional recognition, reflecting her belief that art is more than a product— rather a deeply personal expression. While she values the opportunity to sell her work, Sara emphasizes that painting is as essential to her as breathing, something she would pursue regardless of external success.
A selection of available works by Carter:
To inquire about any of these pieces, email info@cocollect.art
