Sara McKenzie Mixed Media Art Recently Featured on Close Up Radio
SANTA FE, NM, UNITED STATES, July 13, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Art has the remarkable ability to speak where words fall short. It can stir emotions, awaken memories, inspire healing, and connect us to parts of ourselves we may not even realize exist. For abstract mixed media artist Sara McKenzie, art is not about recreating what the eye can already see—it is about revealing what the heart already knows.
Close Up Radio is delighted to welcome back acclaimed abstract mixed media artist Sara McKenzie for another inspiring conversation with host Jim Masters.
Through vibrant color, expressive texture, rich layers, and intuitive composition, Sara creates artwork that invites viewers to pause, reflect, and experience emotion in deeply personal ways. Rather than painting recognizable landscapes, portraits, or still-life subjects, she explores the subconscious, allowing each painting to evolve naturally as an expression of discovery rather than depiction.
"My paintings are about discovery rather than depiction," Sara explains. "I'm not trying to paint an apple, a tree, or a person. I'm creating relationships between color, form, line, and texture that communicate something deeper."
Central to Sara's artistic process is mixed media, a technique that combines multiple materials to create depth, complexity, and visual storytelling. Her canvases often begin with layers of vintage book pages, antique sheet music, handmade collage papers, rubber stamp impressions, patterned tissue paper, and other found materials. Some remain visible beneath translucent layers of paint, while others disappear completely, leaving behind only their influence.
"The words or the music may no longer be visible," she says, "but I know they're still there."
That philosophy beautifully mirrors life itself—our experiences, memories, and stories continue to shape us, even when they are no longer visible on the surface.
Sara's creative journey began long before she ever picked up a paintbrush. As a child, she was happiest making things. While other children played outside, Sara could often be found happily sewing doll clothes, creating crafts, or exploring new artistic projects. Throughout her life she has embraced an extraordinary range of creative pursuits including knitting, crocheting, fiber arts, pottery, stained glass, and painting.
Although she pursued a scientific education professionally, creativity remained a constant companion.
Her artistic evolution eventually led her through years of landscape painting, where she mastered traditional techniques and concepts including color theory, composition, and atmospheric perspective. Yet despite developing strong technical skills, she realized her true artistic voice lay elsewhere.
"I wasn't meant to be a landscape painter," she recalls.
As she continued studying with accomplished artists instructors, Sara gradually discovered that what inspired her most was not recreating the visible world but expressing the invisible unseen one.
Today, she describes herself as a "process painter." Rather than beginning with a predetermined image, each painting unfolds organically through layers of color, collage, texture, and experimentation. One layer suggests the next, allowing intuition to guide the creative process.
Perhaps the greatest lesson she has learned is one that extends far beyond art.
"For many of my early paintings," she reflects, "what I thought was a failure simply needed another layer."
It is a philosophy that resonates with life itself. Growth often comes through patience, perseverance, and the willingness to keep creating rather than giving up too soon.
Sara hopes viewers never feel obligated to interpret her work in a particular way. Instead, she invites each person to bring their own experiences, emotions, and imagination to every painting.
One of the greatest compliments she receives is hearing someone say, "Your painting made me feel something. Every time I look at your painting, I see something new."
For Sara, that emotional connection is far more meaningful than simply recognizing a common object on the canvas.
She is also a passionate advocate for arts education and believes creativity is essential to every child's development. Concerned by the decline of art and music programs in many schools, she encourages families and educators to ensure young people have opportunities to explore their own creative voices alongside technology.
"Everyone deserves to experience art," she believes. "Creativity helps us understand ourselves and one another."
Sara also reflects thoughtfully on today's art world, recognizing the challenges many artists face in gaining visibility and balancing creative passion with commercial realities. While grateful that her own work continues to reach audiences, she remains deeply supportive of fellow artists, musicians, writers, and poets whose creative contributions enrich society in countless ways.
Above all, Sara encourages each of us to slow down in an increasingly distracted world. At a time when endless scrolling often competes for our attention, she reminds us of the profound value of surrounding ourselves with meaningful art—art that invites us to pause, reflect, and reconnect with our inner lives and with each other.
Her work reminds us that creativity is not reserved for artists alone. It is a deeply human quality that lives within all of us, waiting to be expressed.
Through every brushstroke, every layer of collage, and every thoughtfully composed canvas, Sara McKenzie continues to demonstrate that art has the power not only to beautify our homes, but to nourish our spirits, awaken our imagination, and help us better understand ourselves.
In a fast-paced world, her work gently reminds us to slow down, embrace creativity, and discover the extraordinary beauty that often lies just beneath the surface.
Close Up Radio recently featured Sara McKenzie in an interview with Jim Masters on Thursday July 9th at 3pm Eastern
Listen to the Podcast
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/close-up-radio-welcomes-back-sara-mckenzie-mixed-media-art/id1785721253?i=1000776210536
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-close-up-radio-242020413/episode/close-up-radio-welcomes-back-sara-mckenzie-mixed-media-art-338553692
https://open.spotify.com/episode/50GtpFwCCgL7zt7qYyV5MN
For more information, please visit www.saramckenzieart.com
Written By: Beatrice Maria Centeno
Lou Ceparano
Close Up Television & Radio
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