Sarah Schneiderman

On June 24, 2022, after 49 years of abortions being legal throughout the United States, our supreme court made it possible for states to implement strict abortion bans. Unfortunately, many people who become pregnant and are not in a position to carry to term cannot receive an abortion in their home states, from Georgia to Idaho. In response to these bans, I am creating maps of states with total or near total abortion bans. These maps contain quotes or statements about the state or an individual's stance on the subject matter. I used non-recyclable trash for the lettering and medical debris for the other embellishments.

These portraits are of women, people of color, lesbians, gay men, and trans people. Many formerly underrepresented people who are often considered disposable in our society have made great strides in politics and state and federal government in 2020 and 2021. After four years of the darkness of the T**** administration, we saw a growth in political diversity at the local, state, and federal levels. These people show tenacity—a willingness to keep striving to show up despite discrimination and recriminations. I hope we see this again in 2026.

This series is a result of my love for scuba diving and my deep concern about the environment, especially how much trash and pollutants we generate. Coral reefs are dying and water temperatures are rising. 

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​These pieces reveal the beauty and sometimes the terror of sea life. Underlying the beauty, I address the overabundance of trash, especially in our oceans, by using found and recycled objects as my medium.

In 2020, when SAR-CoV2 put the world in lockdown, I was a long way from home. I chose to stay where I was but wanted to connect with family and friends back home. So I put out a call on Facebook for my friends to name something Red, Yellow, and Pink. The responses inspired these assemblages.

This artwork highlights the urgent issue of microplastics, which pose a significant threat to human health by accumulating in bodily fluids and tissues. This accumulation can result in inflammation, oxidative stress, and organ dysfunction. My pieces serve as a haunting reminder that what we discard is now linked to our well-being, turning an environmental crisis into a biological one.

These Flags examine our external and internal environments and visions, looking at the harsh truths behind the growing emergencies facing our country and the world. Since the SARS-CoV2 crisis began, the world has created more than 8 million tons of pandemic plastic waste, and much of that garbage is now in the ocean. I made the flags and maps from medical waste to investigate the long-known status of marginalized people in the US healthcare system – trashed. 

After the 2016 general election, I began work on Political Portraits. These are fractured images of people who are or were in the current presidential administration or have exerted political influence therein.  I use found objects and everyday trash. When closely inspected, the viewer cannot see the image; it only appears when we step away. This reflects how we view our world. When quite close to something, we may have a different impression than when we stand back. These portraits either represent the transformation of trash into something beautiful or the horrific feeling that this administration is trashing the planet.

These modified toys investigate gender roles and stereotypes. They also bring to the foreground the perception of glamour of war and the reality of its actuality. More recently, new meaning has been added – the place of transsexuals in the armed forces.