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SARAH GOTOWKA is a visual artist currently living in the Fingerlakes region of New York. She received her MFA from Concordia University in Fiber and Material Practices in 2013, and received her BFA from The Cleveland Institute of Art majoring in Fiber and Material Studies in 2007.

The MFA thesis exhibition Put Your Back Into It, at La Centrale Galerie Powerhouse in Montreal Quebec, explores the intersections of spirituality and twerking through dismantled, reassembled and embellished contemporary memes such as YouTube videos, Twitterfeed and cultural artifacts. (Photo Creds: Chris Boyne and Virginie Jourdain) HULA–RING Three plastic hula hoops purchased from Toy-R-Us, tape, gold and bronze delica beads, polyester and linen thread. “#singleasfuck” is a hashtag commonly used by teenagers and young adults on Twitter to express their experiences of singledom. It is usually used at the end of a self denigrating statement, for example: “Yesterday I said I love you to my body pillow #singleasfuck.” Tweets generally alternate between these unabashed declarations of loneliness and proclamations of living the single life to the fullest (which usually entails a high level of intoxication and copulation with as many people as possible). Both facets of #singleasfuck re-inscribe the stigmatized script of singledom as either desperately miserable or desperately on the prowl.

#sarah gotowka #put your back into it #hula ring #giant ring #gold ring #singelasfuck #la centrale

Meditations on the Club 5 minute looped video, two synchronized channels. This installation is comprised solely of downloaded YouTube clips from contemporary music videos that take place in the club.

#sarah gotowka #meditations on the club #in da club #video installation #the dream #nicki minaj

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DQWCs0SCts Whuh Uh Oh 30 second video, looped 6 times. Made entirely of downloaded YouTube footage from live Beyoncé concerts as she and her audience sing a tirade of “whuh uh oh’s” from Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It ) back and forth, forever. This song gave birth to the first internet dance craze , and is the predecessor to the recent viral dance sensations Gangnam Style and Harlem Shake. After Midday and the Sun Starts to Tilt Downwards Made using Photobooth on my 2010 Macbook Pro, this video documents one of my many attempts at the handstand-twerk. I have been training consistently everyday (between minor injuries) for the past 3 weeks. During each practice, I hold the handstand as long as I possibly can until I feel like I may vomit from the amount of blood rushing to my head. The maximum duration of said held twerk-handstands range anywhere from 3 minutes to 20 seconds, depending on my level of exertion. This video archives my 5th attempt on May 19th, 2013 in the early afternoon, weighing in at 1 minute and 8 seconds.

#ExpressYourself photoshop, static cling vinyl Diplo’s 2012 music video Express Yourself helped expose the culture of twerking to the suburbs of North America, and has cemented the twerk-handstand as an iconic dance for young females. This piece is composed entirely of photographs taken from Twitter under the hashtag expressyourself where girls imitate the images from Diplo’s music video. Each photo was tagged “@diplo” to converse directly with the celebrity producer in the digital flesh. On a daily basis, Diplo selects #expressyourself photos that he deems worthy, then retweets them.

#sarah gotowka #diplo #express yourself #twitter #twerking #handstand twerk #stained glass #la centrale

How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore? 2012 Composed solely from hand woven glow-in-the-dark boondoggle (a.k.a. gimp, scoubidou, rexlace) this giant sadface materializes the untranslatable emotions that are often miscommunicated through digital conversations. (The title is taken from Prince's 1982 ballad.) This piece was installed in FOFA Gallery's Black Box in Montreal QC from January - February 2012. Approx. 3' [w] x 3' [h] x 6" [d] Photo credit: Guy L'Heureux

#sarah gotowka #boondoggle #emoticon #sadface #montreal #art #text #sext #how come u don't call me anymore #prince #R&B #love #life

How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore? FOFA Gallery, Black Box, Montreal QC. (January - Feb 2012) View from approx 15' away.

#sarah gotowka #emoticon #fofa gallery #text message #montreal #art #sext #sadface #love #prince #how come u don't call me anymore

How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore under construction. This piece would not have been possible without the help of Gabrielle Gingras, Rebecca Smyth, Alex Borkowski, Sarah Barr, Andreanne Godin, Julia Rouleau, Johanna Autin, and NJ, my Polish friend from the prototyping lab.

#sarah gotowka #prince #boondoggle #glow in the dark #rexlace #weaving #r&b #how come u don't call me anymore #love #emoticon #sadface

North American Embroidery Sampler for 2011

Hand embroidered, embroidery floss of various colors. Approximately 2.5' x 1.5'.

Embroidery samplers were a place for women to practice patterns and needle techniques, and to memorize things like multiplication charts or church hymns; these ended up archiving a culture's ideals during a specific time period. The sampler I created documents North American fashion trends (faux tribal patterns and wolf faces), lifestyles promoted through music (The Weeknd's "The Morning" lyric), and the contemporary electronic language of communication (text slang and acronyms).

#Sarah Gotowka #embroidery sampler #embroider #needlwork #wolf face #abbreviations #text slang #tribal pattern

Toni Braxton 2010

Bead weaving, cream and gold beads. Approximately 2" x 3'. From Toni Braxton's "I Get So High." The lyric reads "I want to feel your heart and soul inside of me" translated to text slang, utilizing an emoticon heart (<3).

#Sarah Gotowka #<3 #toni braxton #heart and soul #i get so high #bead weaving #lyric

The Way U Make Me Feel 2010

During the spring of 2010 I asked friends from Montreal to sing a lyric of their choice that encapsulated their current romantic sentiments. Each stage from the cycle of love was represented: fantasy and sexual desire, infatuation and obsession, idealistic love and need for the other, the deterioration of the relationship, the split, emotional turmoil, loneliness and anger, the mending of the heart, and then falling in love all over again. (The Way U Make Me Feel is originally intended to be viewed as a loop.)