Sarah Gilman is a painter currently based in the Merseyside area. Gilman studied Fine Art Painting (BA Hons) at University Centre St Helens and graduated in 2018 with First Class Honours. She has exhibited both locally and nationally since 2017 and was awarded First Prize at St Helens Open Arts Prize 2019.
Recent exhibitions include: Shuffle Selects: Liverpool; Solo Exhibition: The World of Glass; Slap-Bang: Warrington; New Light Art Prize 2020-21, Scarborough, Newcastle, Carlisle, and London; Independents Biennial 2021, online and newspaper publication; Regarding the Object (solo show), Liverpool; Enough is Definitely Enough, Salford and Middlesbrough; More T’North, Preston; A Little Painting Show, Manchester,Liverpool and Leeds; Made It, Manchester; PAINT, Manchester; Greater Manchester Arts Prize, Bolton; New Light Art Prize 2017-19, County Durham, West Yorkshire, London and Cumbria.
Gilman’s work is held in a number of private collections and has recently been included in the publication and exhibition entitled “Enough is Definitely Enough” by Andrew Bracey.
Artist Statement
Sarah Gilman’s recent painting practice has explored the relation of trompe l’oeil to the genre of still-life painting. The French term meaning ‘to deceive the eye’ is used to describe paintings that are intended to fool the viewer into believing, if only for a moment, that what they see is the projection of a three dimensional object into real space, rather than an illusion held on the surface of a flat plane. Directly influenced by the paintings of 17th century still-life painters, such as Cornelius Gijsbrechts and Samuel van Hoogstraten, Gilman, however, situates her painting within contemporary discourses surrounding the still-life genre.
Gilman’s use of trompe l’oeil reminds us, after the initial encounter with illusion – an appreciation of the artfulness of illusion, that this mimetic project ultimately leads us back to the material of paint. In this sense Gilman’s practice could be described as an interest in the relation between painting and cognitive self-reflexivity – the mechanics of painting by which we are made aware of the fact that we are thinking about the act of looking and we are thinking about this act of thinking. Another kind of painting that promotes this self-reflexivity, and one that Gilman’s current painting explores is the meta-picture – pictures within pictures.
EDUCATION
| 2018 | BA (First Class Hons) Degree Fine Art Painting |
| 2015 | Access to Higher Education Art and Design |
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
| 2022 | Sarah Gilman at The World of Glass, Merseyside |
| 2020 | Regarding the Object: Editions Gallery, Liverpool |
| 2019 | Entangle: Cornerstone Gallery, Liverpool Hope Creative Campus, Liverpool |
| 2018 | Entangle: Beechams Gallery, Merseyside |
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
| 2023 | Paper Cuts: Crosby, Merseyside |
| 2022 | Shuffle Selects: 2 Princes Road, Liverpool |
| 2021 | Slap Bang: Warrington Contemporary Arts Festival, Warrington |
| New Light Arts Prize 2020-21: Bankside Gallery, London | |
| New Light Arts Prize 2020-21: Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery, Carlisle | |
| Between the Pages: The World of Glass, Merseyside | |
| New Light Arts Prize 2020-21: The Biscuit Factory, Newcastle | |
| Independents Biennial 2021: Online and newspaper publication | |
| 2020 | Somewhere Between Reality and Obscurity, The Viewing Room, Digital Gallery |
| Enough is Definitely Enough: Pineapple Black Gallery, Middlesbrough | |
| New Light Arts Prize 2020-21: Scarborough Art Gallery, Scarborough | |
| WCAF20 Open Exhibition: Warrington Museum and Art Gallery | |
| Enough is Definitely Enough: Oceans Apart, Salford | |
| More T’North: The Harris Museum and Gallery, Preston | |
| A Little Painting Show, The Brunswick Gallery, Leeds | |
| 2019 | A Little Painting Show, Dead Pigeon Gallery, Liverpool |
| Air Open 2019, Air Gallery, Altrincham, Manchester | |
| Made It: Short Supply, Paradise Works, Salford | |
| St Helens Open Art Prize, The World of Glass (FIRST PRIZE) | |
| The Lancashire Open, Chapel Gallery, Ormskirk (THIRD PRIZE) | |
| PAINT: PS Mirabel, Mirabel Studios, Manchester | |
| Greater Manchester Arts Prize, Bolton Museum and Art Gallery, Bolton | |
| A Little Painting Show: OA Studios, Salford, Manchester | |
| 2018-19 | New Light Art Prize: Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery, Carlisle, Cumbria |
| 2018 | A Little Painting Show: Arena Studios, Liverpool |
| The Winter Collection: Saul Hay Gallery, Manchester | |
| Bankley Open Call: Bankley Studios and Gallery, Levenshulme, Manchester | |
| Air Open 2018: Air Gallery, Altrincham, Manchester | |
| Negotiate: Cross Street Arts Gallery, Greater Manchester | |
| Twice As Nice: PS Mirabel, Mirabel Studios, Manchester | |
| Shortlist: Saul Hay Gallery, Manchester | |
| SIZE matters: The World of Glass Museum and Art Gallery, St Helens, Merseyside | |
| Vortex (third year degree show): University Centre St Helens, Merseyside | |
| New Light Art Prize: Bankside Gallery, Bankside, London | |
| New Light Art Prize: Huddersfield Art Gallery, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire | |
| 2017-18 | New Light Art Prize: Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, County Durham |
| 2017 | SFSA Painting Open: noformat Gallery, Deptford, London |
| Bankley Open Call: Bankley Studios & Gallery, Levenshulme, Manchester | |
| Air Gallery Open Call: Air Gallery, Altrincham, Manchester | |
| Small World: PSMirabel, Mirabel Studios, Manchester | |
| BA2 Show: Beechams Building, Merseyside | |
| 2016 | St Helens Open: The World of Glass Museum and Art Gallery, St Helens, Merseyside (Highly Commended Award) |
PUBLICATIONS
“Enough is Definitely Enough” by Andrew Bracey (Beam Editions)