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Sarah Hancock

BFA Painting &

New Media

Ceramics

Artist Statement

Inspired by folklore, mythology, and various domestic arts, this installation is the culmination of scholarly exploration and artistic experimentation. My primary source material is the fornaldarsögur norðurlanda, Icelandic texts written between the 13th and 14th centuries that record the "prehistory" of Iceland in continental Europe and Scandinavia. Scholars have discovered that much of this recorded material was a blend of historically accurate customs and culture and contemporary Icelandic culture in the 13th/14th centuries. Scholars, therefore, have declared that these sagas may be the medieval equivalent of "recorded history" but cannot be taken literally. Ergo, these sagas show that one key component of story-telling for centuries is for relatability and escapism. This attitude toward the fornaldarsögur norðurlanda has inspired me to do the same: to resurrect the classic characters to reflect modern conditions of what it is like to be human in our contemporary era. From love and grief, pride and humility, to family and friendship, the audience can venture into this world and watch each character's story unfold and tangle amongst each other. Hopefully, the audience can see qualities of themselves within these characters and learn how to better benefit from the challenges thrown at us in this hectic storm we call living.

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