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Arts & Entertainment

Minneapolis Painter Sarah Wieben to Exhibit at Gallery 360

Her show "Elements of Nature" opens Saturday evening.

Some people are born artists, others suprise themselves by stumbling into art later in life. Minneapolis oil painter Sarah Wieben is that second type, though you might not know it by viewing her sophisticated, subdued and thoughtful work. 

After getting a degree in Soviet Studies at the University of Minnesota in the ‘80s, Wieben took a job at the American Embassy in Moscow. It was there she became engaged to a sculptor and fell in love with art. She and the sculptor eventually parted ways, but the love affair with art continued. Wieben returned to Minneapolis awakened to the possibilities of art and a desire to create it herself. She has been painting for over a decade now. 

“When I think of it now, it was a naive step,” Wieben said. “I didn’t have any background, I just sort of believed I could do it without having any evidence to support that.”

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Through a BFA program at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Wieben studied abroad in Ireland, where she first began painting landscapes. 

It’s been landscapes ever since, a genre she loves for its ability to communicate an artist’s vistion without the aid–or distraction–of figures. Her show, opening at on Saturday, however, marks the first time Wieben has addressed the landscapes right in front of her. It is a show of Minneapolis street scenes and beach scenes–the sights she sees every day. 

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After a trying winter, flooding and storms, the paintings offer both overt and subtle references to the power of nature. 

“I came to an understanding that we don’t have as much control over the elements as we like to think we do,” Wieben said. 

Saturday evening from 7 to 10 p.m. an opening reception for Wieben’s show “Elements of Nature” will be held at Gallery 360. Showcasing roughly 15 paintings, all completed within the last few months, this marks Wieben’s first time as a featured artist at the gallery. 

Merry Beck, owner of Gallery 360, also let Patch know that Katherine Lamm (recently featured in an ) will have a window installation for this show. 

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