I self-publish to have full artistic control over the hardest things to express: the self. I love the journey of revisiting time, replaying, recording and sometimes re-recording memories. Writing, for me, coaxes the nervous system to relax. I tap my fingers along the flesh in those painful spots, to realize they were smooth and knot-free to begin with and normal, healthy variations of the human experience. When the tenderness melts, which can sometime take years, there will be a new place to tap.
Sourdough Zine, 2021
With the interest of returning to natural fermentation and baking at home, I received many messages in 2020 on starters, troubleshooting loaves, and fermentation. I dehydrated some of Daisy, my sourdough starter to offer as part of Plant it Forward’s cupboard share. While not replacing the steps to create a starter, having some aspects of a mature starter cut the time in half to establish a predictable starter. Download the zine and origami your way into a small guide. More detailed notes at bread.blog.
The Lima Year, 2019
They say travel opens the mind, the palate, creativity, understanding of the world—that it changes you. That I could return with an expanded self. I took a year to travel, to stay where I traveled to, to sit with my own being. I moved to Peru for an opportunity to share my experiences baking and working in restaurants. This adventure would prove to hold space for many more life-expanding experiences.
This 48 page zine, printed on newsprint with the assistance of Newspaper Club, where Sarah deposits her creativity, hopes to inspire and encourage finding our own chinkana. Its vibration supported with writings of introspection, prose, photographs, drawings, and deep expression of gratitude. Edition of 100. Purchase: HERE
The Art of Baking: Oxheart, 2017
As my time at Oxheart came to an end, I put my thoughts and memories on paper. Over the years 2015-2017, I turned them into paintings, drawings, and collages. I placed color. I gave stories another breath and every time you turn its page, it gets another. I compiled recipes. I share everything from the techniques I picked up staging around the world to the ingredients of Oxheart staff meal.
Made with help from friends, The Art of Baking: Oxheart reflects the community spirit that supported this small but ambitious restaurant that was open for 5 years. Sarah Belfort helped me capture the things that float inside my head. Marcella Arreaga and Melissa Kwan added splashes of their creativity. There’s a whole lot of love and reflection. The experience of opening Oxheart led me on a path that explored the expression of being human. I’ve since flourished as an individual, a human, an artist.
This record of self-discovery reveals the love and passion behind a woman who enjoys sharing her craft with others. Currently available as a PDF, presented with spreads (137 pages).
A Cost-Benefits Analysis of Campus Recycling: The University of Austin, 2006.
I studied economics in college, writing a senior thesis on the cost-benefit analysis of university recycling, tried to quantify environmental and social externalities, and wished the data I collected told a different story, with results that still hold true in many places a decade later. Recycling would never become a lucrative way to divert waste. People could not be convinced that it mattered even if the recycling bins were next to the trash-for-landfill bins. Perhaps we subconsciously knew that recycling wasn’t sustainable and that reducing and reusing were far better solutions. In the world of capitalism, reducing and reusing don’t build industries. They build, however, an immeasurable value of awareness and connectedness.
Abstract: As people become aware of the impacts of their landfilled waste, recycling has gained popularity. Some citizens demand recycling. What is the right amount of recycling? If cities want more, then how can the amount of waste recycled be increased? A campus-wide recycling effort at The University of Texas can expand the amount of waste recycled; but, more importantly, will the private benefits outweigh private costs? And for some, will the social benefits outweigh the social costs?
Karen Man 