Posts by Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met, Manager of My Modern Met Store, and co-host of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. As an illustrator and writer living in Seattle, she chronicles illustration, embroidery, and beyond through her blog Brown Paper Bag and Instagram @brwnpaperbag. She wrote a book about embroidery artist Sarah K. Benning titled "Embroidered Life" that was published by Chronicle Books in 2019. Sara is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art. She earned her BFA in Illustration in 2008 and MFA in Illustration Practice in 2013.
Sculpture
December 19, 2018

Artist Turns Medieval Monsters from Illuminated Manuscripts into Colorful Piñatas

Contemporary artist Roberto Benavidez finds inspiration in imagery and literature from hundreds of years ago. Influenced by works like Hieronymus Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights, he manages to fuse the famous source materials with elements that are significant to his own life. Benavidez grew up in rural southern Texas where the party piñata is commonplace. He uses the crepe paper creations as the basis for his sculptures.

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Drawing
November 29, 2018

Honest Comics About Being Single Are Relatable for Anyone Who Flies Solo

Being single can be an illuminating time for a person. After all, it’s only when we navigate the world solo that we learn who we really are. But just because the experience brings us closer to self-actualization, the very relatable truth is that singledom is not all sunshine and rainbows. Flying solo can be an exercise in frustration (especially the dating part) and downright lonely.

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Music
November 22, 2018

Musicians Use Rubber Chicken to Masterfully Recreate Classical Music

The squeaky rubber chicken has a reputation as being a joke toy, but as a musical instrument? Not so much. But as the classically-trained musician Eddy Chen demonstrates, the silly creature can recreate beautiful tunes. One of his latest performances is a cover of “Pachelbel’s Canon,” first composed by Johann Pachelbel in the 19th century. In a video, Chen shows how he’s able to masterfully mimic the original song by strategically squeezing the chicken.

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My Modern Met

Celebrating creativity and promoting a positive culture by spotlighting the best sides of humanity—from the lighthearted and fun to the thought-provoking and enlightening.