As children we are fascinated by the mythical. Imagining the attractive or even the disturbing serves as an escape from reality. By painting unicorns, vast surreal landscapes, and imaginative playscapes my work expands the white cube gallery into an immersive extension of my imagination. By viewing the canvas as a portal into a world where limitations dissolve, I paint acidic colors, fluid boundaries, and a malleable reality.
My studio practice is inspired by artists who experiment with color and scale like Kenny Scharf, Katharina Grosse, and Pipilotti Rist. In my colorful, large-scale works I explore the transformative power of play and how it can transport the viewer into a dreamlike realm beyond the confines of the gallery space. My paintings use traditional techniques on canvas combined with artificial craft materials such as rhinestones, collages, and glitter to create a maximalist, fantasy escape for the viewer. In my work I am able to blend dance, intuitive mark-making, painting, and collage together to achieve an exhalation of delight, wonder, and joy.
The following text explores and elucidates my processes of making paintings and creating videos that encapsulate the overwhelming feeling of childlike awe, dreams of vintage pop-culture cartoons, and personal memories of play.
","abstract_html":"<p>As children we are fascinated by the mythical. Imagining the attractive or even the disturbing serves as an escape from reality. By painting unicorns, vast surreal landscapes, and imaginative playscapes my work expands the white cube gallery into an immersive extension of my imagination. By viewing the canvas as a portal into a world where limitations dissolve, I paint acidic colors, fluid boundaries, and a malleable reality.</p> <p>My studio practice is inspired by artists who experiment with color and scale like Kenny Scharf, Katharina Grosse, and Pipilotti Rist. In my colorful, large-scale works I explore the transformative power of play and how it can transport the viewer into a dreamlike realm beyond the confines of the gallery space. My paintings use traditional techniques on canvas combined with artificial craft materials such as rhinestones, collages, and glitter to create a maximalist, fantasy escape for the viewer. In my work I am able to blend dance, intuitive mark-making, painting, and collage together to achieve an exhalation of delight, wonder, and joy.</p> <p>The following text explores and elucidates my processes of making paintings and creating videos that encapsulate the overwhelming feeling of childlike awe, dreams of vintage pop-culture cartoons, and personal memories of play.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Moon, Sarah"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Visual Art","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Graduate School of Art","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Cheryl Wassenaar","Jamie Adams","Jack Risley"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2024,"date_issued":"2024-05-08T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2024-05-08T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:12:17Z","subjects":["Painting","Collage","Pop Surrealism","Performance","Color","Wonder","Immersive","Art and Design"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/mfa_visual_art/22","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Cheryl Wassenaar","Jamie Adams","Jack Risley"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Moon, Sarah"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2024-05-07T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Graduate School of Art"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Visual Art"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Painting","Collage","Pop Surrealism","Performance","Color","Wonder","Immersive","Art and Design"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/mfa_visual_art/22"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["As children we are fascinated by the mythical. Imagining the attractive or even the disturbing serves as an escape from reality. By painting unicorns, vast surreal landscapes, and imaginative playscapes my work expands the white cube gallery into an immersive extension of my imagination. By viewing the canvas as a portal into a world where limitations dissolve, I paint acidic colors, fluid boundaries, and a malleable reality.
My studio practice is inspired by artists who experiment with color and scale like Kenny Scharf, Katharina Grosse, and Pipilotti Rist. In my colorful, large-scale works I explore the transformative power of play and how it can transport the viewer into a dreamlike realm beyond the confines of the gallery space. My paintings use traditional techniques on canvas combined with artificial craft materials such as rhinestones, collages, and glitter to create a maximalist, fantasy escape for the viewer. In my work I am able to blend dance, intuitive mark-making, painting, and collage together to achieve an exhalation of delight, wonder, and joy.
The following text explores and elucidates my processes of making paintings and creating videos that encapsulate the overwhelming feeling of childlike awe, dreams of vintage pop-culture cartoons, and personal memories of play.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Land of Reverie"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Cheryl Wassenaar","Jamie Adams","Jack Risley"],"dc:creator":["Moon, Sarah"],"dc:date.available":["2024-05-07T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["As children we are fascinated by the mythical. Imagining the attractive or even the disturbing serves as an escape from reality. By painting unicorns, vast surreal landscapes, and imaginative playscapes my work expands the white cube gallery into an immersive extension of my imagination. By viewing the canvas as a portal into a world where limitations dissolve, I paint acidic colors, fluid boundaries, and a malleable reality.
My studio practice is inspired by artists who experiment with color and scale like Kenny Scharf, Katharina Grosse, and Pipilotti Rist. In my colorful, large-scale works I explore the transformative power of play and how it can transport the viewer into a dreamlike realm beyond the confines of the gallery space. My paintings use traditional techniques on canvas combined with artificial craft materials such as rhinestones, collages, and glitter to create a maximalist, fantasy escape for the viewer. In my work I am able to blend dance, intuitive mark-making, painting, and collage together to achieve an exhalation of delight, wonder, and joy.
The following text explores and elucidates my processes of making paintings and creating videos that encapsulate the overwhelming feeling of childlike awe, dreams of vintage pop-culture cartoons, and personal memories of play.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/mfa_visual_art/22"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:subject":["Painting","Collage","Pop Surrealism","Performance","Color","Wonder","Immersive","Art and Design"],"dc:title":["The Land of Reverie"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Graduate School of Art"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Visual Art"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:12:17Z"}