Portfolio
Works of Mia Melanie Saar divided into 4 categories. These categories are not from a specific time period (except “The Way to the Heart is Through the Stomach”) but rather tied together by similar themes or a source of inspiration.
Back to the roots
The common motive of these paintings is the checkerboard pattern, that has been with the artist for quite a long time, sometimes as a symbol, sometimes as rhythm. “Back to the roots” works are like quilt blankets, stories and memories woven together into something bigger. Mia is gaining inspiration from her grandmother’s real quilt blankets because she noticed that they work similarly – fragments from childhood intertwined into something new.
She has also brought mushrooms into the mix. Mushrooms remind her of the early morning mushroom picking with her dad, although at the time it felt more like a punishment. Only years later did she see those moments as a father’s attempt to spend time with her daughter and share something meaningful. It is clear as day that a good mushroom spot is like a family relic that you won’t share with everyone.
One tale at a time
“One tale at a time” is a series of stories. Some are self-portraits – soul searching through the absurdity of life or intense sadness. Other faces are like mirrors, answering questions stuck in Mia’s head. Sometimes she can’t even differentiate if she is painting herself or someone else.
Mia is portraying both childhood memories as well as moments from later life – casual glances and conversations that, for various reasons, have stayed with her. The artist paints these moments as she remembers them, not necessarily as they actually happened. Then again, everyone’s reality is a little different.
These paintings vary a lot, some are warm, some quiet, some seem very odd. Others don’t have a beginning or an end, just a feeling. But each one of them has one tale at a time
Many-faced
“Many-faced” is a series of paintings that come to life at certain points in Mia’s life when there are big emotions boiling under the surface. These paintings are not planned but are just born in the present moment, impulsively and almost by their own volition. The hand moves faster than thought and what exactly manifested on the canvas is apparent after the act.
Creatures that come to life through these paintings are not some scary monsters but feelings, a reflection of the artist’s inner world. Sometimes these paintings are outlets of restlessness, sometimes discomfort. Other times anger or some kind of inexplicable feeling that just wants to get out.
These paintings have their own rhythm and they appear when they’re needed, not following any kind of conceptual rhythm, just bringing ease and relief.
The Way to the Heart is Through the Stomach
“The Way to the Heart is Through the Stomach” is a phrase Mia has always heard at home. In her family, love and cooking have always gone hand in hand and food has always had a central place at every family gathering.
All of Mia’s earliest memories are tied to preparing food — from eating floating island dessert at her grandmother’s house to watching her father prepare four-course dinners at his restaurant. The most important moment at every gathering came when the whole family finally sat down at the table, because enjoying delicious food with your loved ones is one of the sweetest joys in life.
The painting series “The Way to the Heart is Through the Stomach” is the artist’s way of telling her family’s story through food. The series consists of 16 canvases of varying sizes, which together form a 2.4 m x 3.2 m whole.