About Sarah

Artist's Statement and Bio

Color, line, texture, rhythm and movement, imagery and stories inspire me.  As a child  I wanted to be an artist and admired those who could draw.  My path to art has been circuitous and unusual: as a young child, I lived in Spain, Thailand and Argentina. Shortly after my sixth birthday, we returned to the United States to live. That year a neighbor girl made an apron for my favorite doll, sparking a fascination with fiber that continues to this day. 

I want to share my passion to create, to design textile art and surface pattern.  Having been a professional vagabond for my first four decades, my art now celebrates the home-of-my-soul that I found in midcoast Maine.  My path to art included being a Legislative Assistant to a US Congressman then a US Foreign Service Officer for nearly 15 years, sewing for an Interior Designer, then becoming a mom and launching my own small business.

My work includes the bestselling book ThreadWork Unraveled, numerous articles and publication credits spanning from Australia to Europe and include Quilting Arts Magazine, Machine Quilting Unlimited, Germany’s Professional Patchwork,  France’s QuiltMania, The Art of Sarah Ann Smith, so far… and more. My art has been exhibited in the US, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. I’ve appeared on Quilting Arts TV, on The Quilt Show, and have a video workshop from Interweave Press.  I’ve taught across the United States since 2004 and currently take only selected bookings in person and online.  

To view a downloadble bio and artist statement, including short and long versions which press and guilds may use, click on this Bio Link. 

Background

I've had a rather curious and unusual path to art.  As a young child, I lived in Spain, Thailand and Argentina. Shortly after my sixth birthday, we returned to the United States to live. That year a neighbor girl made an apron for my favorite doll, sparking a fascination with fiber that continues to this day. Before long, I began making clothes for my trolls, then graduated to clothing for herself.  All my childhood I wanted to *be* an artist and admired those who could draw.

At the San Domenico School in San Anselmo, California, I received the best education of my life, but also went on to graduate from Georgetown University, work as a Legislative Assistant for a U.S. Congressman in Washington, D.C.; earn a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in Medford, Mass.; and become a U.S. Foreign Service Officer (FSO, or diplomat).

Finally, fate picked up a thimble: while assigned to the U.S. Embassy in La Paz, Bolivia, I came across someone's discarded Keepsake Quilting catalog, which opened up the doors to the quilting world. I haven't looked back since--at long last, a way to marry my love of sewing with my love of art!

In 1997, my husband and fellow-FSO Paul retired. I resigned and became a full-time mom and we moved to San Juan Island, Washington.  In 2004, the family moved again, to Maine, in a quest for better education for the boys.  Here I finally found a sense of home that I had sought all my life and my career in art quilting began.  I'm always learning and improving and seeking to share my delight in art and cloth with others.  For more details in a downloadable PDF, click on this Background Link.

Over the years I’ve learned the most important things are to love your family, friends and what you do.  This is the life I choose to live!