If wood mosaic art is not a style of art you’ve come across before, you’re not alone. It was new to us too! But when we discovered the intricate patterns and puzzles and the natural geometric pieces from Studio Sarai, we wanted to learn more.
We chat to Sarai Yates, one half of the Studio Sarai team who is behind these unique works of art.
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Born in Germany, Sarai now calls Australia home — and it’s here that she fell in love with her craft.
“I’m Sarai, born and bred in Berlin, Germany. I escaped the cold weather in 2016 and now call Fremantle on the sunshine-filled west coast of Australia home. It’s such a creative town and definitely feels like home,” says Sarai with a smile.
“My husband Paul makes up the other half of my art business. He joined in 2021 and together we have 2 beautiful little boys.
“We somehow fell into the whole art space. Neither of us has a degree or background in woodworking or art. Paul is a chef by trade and my background is languages, communications and economics!
We’re very grateful to have ended up here. Our art has allowed us to live a very relaxed and flexible lifestyle.
Creating her successful wood mosaic art business was actually a happy accident.
“Art has always been my passion. When COVID hit, I was made redundant and was looking for a creative output,” Sarai recalls.
“I stumbled across wood mosaic art on Pintrest. I bought a little mitre saw and started practicing. It was the process of turning something rough and bare into intricate patterns and colourful designs that I really fell in love with.
“I started playing with paint to complement the grain and shades of the timber and as I posted my work on Instagram, more and more people starting following along my journey.
Art was never a decision… it was more of an accident!
The pieces Studio Sarai create are beautiful and in some cases, functional too.
“Little did I know this little hobby of mine would turn into a fully fledged business,” Sarai says excitedly.
“I still pinch myself that I get to create art for a living now. Paul and I have worked hard over the past few years developing new design concepts and improving our craft.
“Our style has become very popular. We have sold hundreds of artworks with buyers from across the world. We’ve held art exhibitions, launched online art courses and even created functional art.
“Our barn doors are some of our best sellers. They’re unique, beautiful and always one of a kind.”
Sarai and Paul are a testament to their craft, both being self-taught.
“We both love working with timber but learning to create wood mosaic art was a lot of trial and error! There were no in-depth tutorials when I found the craft online. I just trialed and tested by looking at images and refined my skills over time,” Sarai says.
“That’s the main reason I launched our online courses that teach wood mosaic art. So other creative who might be interested in the skill can give it a go.
“There are many other wood artists on Instagram, mostly based in America. But I guess our style is a bit different as we work on a very large scale and play with colours a lot.”
This unique art form is nothing like we’ve seen before.
“It’s a bit hard to describe how we do what we do! It’s not like a painting where you just dip your brush in paint and draw on a canvas. Wood art involves machines and math as you have to calculate your angles to create a cohesive pattern.
“We prepare our timber with a table saw and then cut each piece to size with a mitre saw. The designs usually start in the centre and grow outwards.
We never sketch or draw out patterns before we build them. Every design evolves organically.
“Once a design is complete, we trim and frame the artwork and apply a clear coat which makes the woodgrain pop and the colours really stand out. It’s a beautiful process and we often get completely lost in the workshop for hours on end.”
There are exciting things to come for Studio Sarai.
“When Studio Sarai took off, I had to decide whether or not to quit my day job and pursue art full-time. As much as I would love to be a full-time artist, there is a lot of financial pressure involved when you solely rely on selling art.
“I also didn’t want my creative work to become a chore. Instead, both Paul and I decided to go part-time in our day jobs, and work part-time on the business.
“This way we get the best of both worlds. Job security and benefits while we still get to do what we enjoy without that financial pressure is pretty great!
“Ever since launching my art classes, I have dreamt of teaching more. Not only art, but also how to grow as an artist. I’m working on a very big project, but it’s still a secret… sorry!” Sarai laughs.
Big thank you to Sarai for chatting with us about her unique wood mosaic art. We love learning about new crafts and meeting talented creatives like Sarai. You can see more from Studio Sarai on their website, or take a look at their Instagram page.
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