Exploring the Divine Within the Ordinary

June 16 - July 31, 2023

Denise Bibro Fine Art, NYC, is thrilled to present a captivating virtual solo exhibition “Exploring the Divine Within the Ordinary” featuring works of acclaimed Maine artist Sara Crisp. The exhibition showcases a collection of encaustic works that fuse ancient techniques with contemporary sensibilities.

Sara Crisp draws inspiration from the delicate balance between the natural and the human-made worlds. Through masterful use of encaustic, an ancient method of painting using wax and pigment fused with heat, Crisp meticulously creates multi-layered, translucent works that reflect the interplay between mundane aspects of the natural world and the ethereal realms.

A harmonious union of the spiritual and physical can be found in all Crisp’s creations. The artist embeds various found objects such as flower petals, stems, and seed pods in her artworks, often covering the surface by a sheet of mica, a mineral that adds a shimmering depth to the compositions. Alongside the botanical elements collected from nature or received as gifts from friends and family, Crisp employs intricate mark-making techniques, creating patterns such as tilings, hexagons, and mandalas. Delicate and measured geometric shapes comprised of thin lines coexist with natural materials, intertwining the transcendent spiritual realm with the visible physical world. Her work aims to inspire the recognition of the divine within the mundane and celebrate the exalted within the universal.

Each work meticulously crafted by Sara Crisp exists on the intersection of scientific objectivity and emotional subjectivity. The artist carefully maintains balance between order and chaos, nature and science, clinical and personal. Through the amalgamation of precise geometry and organic artifacts, Crisp’s work captures and preserves the traces of passing time, protecting these symbolic artifacts encased within her pieces.

Sara Crisp has had numerous exhibition at various venues such as Denise Bibro Fine Art, NYC; Portland Museum of Art, Portland, ME; SOHO20, NYC; Center for Maine Contemporary Art, Rockport, ME; Silvermine Guild Arts Center, New Canaan, CT; eklektikos Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; Chautauqua Center for the Visual Arts, Chautauqua, NY, among others. Her work was showcased at international art fairs such as Art Miami, Red Dot, and the Affordable Art Fair. Her numerous awards include the Best of Show prize at the Cambridge Art Association National Prize Show and an artist’s grant from the Maine Arts Commission. She has also received notices in The Boston Globe, Art New England, and The New York Times.