Artist Statement
My work is deeply rooted in neurodivergence and my identity as an autistic mother. I often find verbal language to be inadequate and turn to imagery and metaphor to describe my lived experience. I dance between different mediums pulling from those that best express my inner landscape. My work encompasses traditional handcraft, which connects me to past generations, and emerging technologies, which tether me to the future. My art practice also plays an important social function by contributing to the growing neurodiversity movement.
Bio
Sarah Shotts (they/she) is an interdisciplinary artist and nonbinary mother. Shotts earned their Masters degree in Applied Drama from Goldsmiths University of London. Their undergraduate studies included both Fine and Performing Arts at Mississippi University for Women (MUW.) Shotts is now an instructor of theatre at MUW where they have been teaching for ten years. They work and teach out of their backyard studio in Northwest Arkansas.
Selected Exhibitions
2024 M/otherhood (Devon, UK)
curated by Izzy Perks
2024 Synaptic (Greenville, South Carolina)
curated by Nicole Shannon
2024 Mothering, Milwaukee Art Therapy Collective (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
curated by Laura Fuller-Cooper
2023 Cut, Torn & Mended, Spilt Milk Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
curated by Lauren McLaughlin
2023 Queer Anxiety, All St. Gallery (New York City, New York)
curated by Blair Simmons, Eden Chinn, Sarah Hallacher, and Shuang Cai
2023 Overheads, Diverse Capacities (Solent, UK)
curated by Ellen Gillett
2023 Anthropology of Motherhood Culture of Care, Three Rivers Art Festival (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)
curated by Amy Bowman-McElhone
2023 Do you hear us…are you listening?, Spilt Milk Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
curated by Lauren McLaughlin
2023 Together/Alone, Stay Home Gallery (Paris, Tennessee)
curated by Tara Carpenter Estrada
Publications
2024 My Roots, Motherlore Magazine (Issue 2)
curated by Genevieve Beech
2023 Asynchronous Friendship, Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture (Volume 4, Issue 2)
edited by Robert Rozema, Grand Valley State University
2023 Cut, Torn & Mended, Spilt Milk Gallery (Edinburgh, Scotland)
curated by Lauren McLaughlin
Artist Talks & Speaking Engagements
2023 #ActuallyAutistic Artists Talking, Samford Art Gallery (Birmingham, Alabama)
2016 p’ARTake, Ocean Springs Art Association (Ocean Springs, Mississippi)
2012 Shakespeare & Education, Mississippi Theatre Association Festival (Columbus, Mississippi)
Teaching, Workshops & Relevant Experience
2012-Current Theatre Instructor at Mississippi University for Women (Virtual - Columbus, Mississippi)
2021 Discover Your Creative Ecosystem (Virtual Workshop)
2009-2010 Crossroads Theatre Instructor for At Risk Youths, Columbus Arts Council (Columbus, Mississippi)
2009 Creative Dramatics, Mississippi University for Women (Columbus, Mississippi)
2007 Theatre & Fine Arts Instructor, Columbus Arts Council (Columbus, Mississippi)
2005-2006 Visual Arts & Ceramics Instructor, College for Kids, East Central Community College (Decatur, Mississippi)