Sarah Kaputa ’23 often gets lost in her art, painting for hours at a time. Ever since her grandmother introduced her to portrait-making as a child, she has been extremely passionate about art. Since then, she has experimented with many different styles of art (including printmaking in high school), but takes most of her inspiration from artists in the Renaissance period. Over the course of her high school career, Kaputa discovered a love for art history, and she will be continuing this passion by majoring in art history at Northeastern University.

How did you start making art?

My grandma is a portrait artist, so I followed in her footsteps, and growing up I always was drawing and painting like her. And it was always my top hobby, so it kind of just blossomed. I like painting people a lot; I really follow in my grandmother’s footsteps in that [regard]. But I also do a lot of landscapes and classic stuff like that.

What type of art do you make?

I mostly do painting, but I just started printmaking and I love it. Painting is a lot more fluid; I can work, rework, change things around, and get creative. But printmaking, there’s a lot of planning that has to go into it, which is different for me because a lot of times I don’t plan; I start painting. But both are really fun and I like that it’s a new thing. I’ve been painting since I was young, but I started printmaking last year, so I’m still developing my craft.

How has your art style developed?

As I’ve grown, I’ve just figured out what I like to paint in terms of subject matter, but also I’m a really big fan of Renaissance art, so I take a lot of inspiration and style from that. But I also like being a little more fluid and I’ve kind of forced myself with my installation to try out different styles and things like that.

Do you have any inspirations in art?

I’m a really big fan of Artemisia Gentileschi. She’s one of the only few female Renaissance painters, and she has this incredible painting of two strong women killing a man. It’s so powerful and amazing and it gets me every time; she’s just so cool. I think it’s really cool that she was one of the first [women] to be famous and among the greats. She’s dear to my heart.

What are some challenges in painting?

I think just coming up with a plan for something that’s unique and something that really interests me. [In] all of my paintings, I get really in the zone and I’ll end up working for like six hours at a time because I just love it so much. [One particular challenge is] just planning something that’s interesting, new, and creative. I always try to create something that I feel I can be proud of it at the end.

Are you going to continue to paint after graduation?

I’m actually not majoring in art, but I’m majoring in art history, so I’ll still have that piece that I can connect to in my studies. But I’m definitely going to take art classes and go to studios and museums and things like that, so I’ll definitely keep it up.