Sarah BRAYER
Born: 1957 in Rochester, New York
Medium: Aquatint, Etching, Lithograph and Washi Paperwork

Sarah Brayer is best known for her poured washi paperworks and editioned aquatint
prints. Aquatint is a variety of etching which results in soft tonal areas. In both media, Sarah’s
emphasis is creating a sense of atmosphere -- a steamy Japanese ofuro bath, the splashing waters
of a waterfall, or the moon shrouded in misty clouds.

A Cum Laude graduate in Studio Art at Connecticut College, Sarah studied printmaking
in London, and went to Japan in 1979 to learn woodcuts at the Toshi Yoshida Atelier. Since then,
she has been living in Kyoto, with periodic work stays in Imadate and New York City.
With papermaking, Sarah creates an image at the same time as the paper. She will often
combine that with brush painting, collage and aquatint to create the final unique piece. Poured
washi is quite painterly and a free, loose medium which can be done on a much larger scale than
intaglio. Recently she has added photo-luminescent pigments to some works for an added look.

A well established and internationally acclaimed artist, in 1992 Sarah became the very
first person to ever exhibit at Kyoto’s famous twelve hundred year old Byodoin Temple. In 2007
she was selected to be the cover artist for the catalog of the prestigious CWAJ Print Show held
every October in Tokyo. And in June 2013, Sarah was awarded the Chokan Hyosho
(Commissioner’s Award) by the Bunkacho, Japan’s Ministry of Culture, for making Japanese
culture better known internationally, through her original creations in washi.

Collections:
British Museum, London
R. J. Reynolds, Tokyo
Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian
Oregon Art Institute, Portland
University of Rochester Art Gallery
University Hospitals, Cleveland
Caraccio Collection, New York
US State Department, Washington, DC
American College Board, New York
Rutgers University Art Museum
American Embassy, Tokyo
Citibank, Tokyo
The Bank of Tokyo, Hong Kong
Newark Public Library
US Library of Congress
Johnson Museum, Cornell NY
Smith Museum
Worcester Museum

Solo Exhibitions:

Los Angeles
Rochester, New York
Tokyo, Japan
Kyoto Dohanga Kyokai
Bodega Bay, California

Group Exhibitions:

Portland Art Institute
Rutgers University
CWAJ Print Show, Tokyo
Franklin & Marshall Coll.
Japan Print Association, Tokyo

video of Sarah discussing her photoluminescent work