Sara Badr Schmidt, a visual artist born in Stockholm, is of Swedish and Lebanese descent. She has lived between Lebanon, France, and Sweden, and currently resides and creates in Paris. Her artistic philosophy is rooted in poetry and universality, aiming to evoke emotions and provoke questions. Her ultimate aspiration is to dismantle restrictive boundaries by fostering a connection between the observer and the artwork. This connection blurs the lines between the artwork and the individual, whether through immersive installations in exhibitions or functional creations that encourage personal interaction. The pieces she creates embody her mission to reintegrate art into our daily existence, transforming it into a sensory journey.
Sara Badr Schmidt’s artistic practice combines various techniques and media. Her creations blend images and texts, light and materials, sound and touch. In her art, she explores the coexistence of cultures, the unresolved complexities of territorial identity, the sociopolitical essence of places, and the aspiration for peaceful coexistence among peoples, transcending borders. Her projects challenge the conventional notion of boundaries while celebrating the enrichment that results from the interaction of different cultures. She offers a contemplative reflection on the impact of geographical borders and humanity’s complex relationship with the environment. Her works strikingly illustrate the harsh reality and inherent absurdity of these borders, highlighting the limits of the human body in relation to its surroundings, prompting deep contemplation of one’s place and belonging. In a harmonious fusion of poetry and politics, Sara Badr Schmidt’s art strives to capture the intricate dance between beauty and tragedy, offering a unique perspective on these fundamental aspects of human existence.
With her functional artworks, Sara Badr Schmidt aims to dissolve the boundary between the viewer and the artwork. Her goal is to reintegrate art into our everyday lives through functional, sensory creations. These pieces go beyond mere practical utility; they also serve as a form of personal expression. They challenge the conventional uses of materials while narrating a unique and poetic story that leaves room for imagination. These creations, designed in response to their environment, are primarily site-specific works. Each artwork seamlessly integrates into a specific location, relinquishing its presumed autonomy, and, due to its dimensions, envelops the viewer. For the artist, art is intrinsically connected to life and the real world, and they, in turn, transform it.
« Take two worlds that are completely different from one another, the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tales and the wars that are tearing apart the Middle East, and look for possible connections between the two. Seemingly there are none. But Sara Badr Schmidt is an artist who forms connections where the common mortal only sees walls and borders … Sara Badr Schmidt’s aesthetic choice here is paradoxical: she depicts violence with gentleness, the red of blood with the blue of the sky, the rain of bombshells with the flight of birds. She is not trying to contend with what so many other artists have done, piling up corpses, showing ruins, and photographing mutilated and injured bodies. She avoids bloody expressionism and adopts subdued symbolism. She recreates the war with an image of conceivable happiness. It is this intention that makes her work so powerful: the eye is at first unarmed.»
Pascal Bruckner
