HISTORICAL: Born: Havana, Cuba, reared in Chicago, Illinois, presently residing in Drummond, Wisconsin.

STUDIO: Dragonfly Studio, 1990 to present. 46400 Blue Moon Road, Drummond, WI 54832. EMAIL: info@sarabalbin.com  WEBSITE: www.sarabalbin.com

EDUCATION: Bachelor of Fine Arts, University of Wisconsin, Superior, WI. Master of Art Therapy, University of Wisconsin, Superior, WI, Registered Art Therapist (ATR).

HIGHLIGHTS OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE COMMISSIONS

Compassion      Steel, stainless steel and rock cairn tribute to the Hayward Hospital Auxiliary’s 70th anniversary – Tamarack Health Hayward Medical Center, Hayward, WI – November 2023

Healing Waters of Gitchi Gamig       Stylized stainless steel waves reflective of Lake Superior’s healing waters – St. Mary’s Essentia Hospital entryway sculpture, Duluth, MN – July 2023

Manoomin – Food that Grows in Water     Steel and stainless steel depiction of Native American hands, flowing water and wild rice – Rice Lake, WI – October 2022

Timber Trail Wolves      A pair of stainless steel wolves howling at the moon fabricated from recycled bulk tank metal. Cogbill Cabin on the American Birkebeiner Ski Trail at Timber Trail in Cable, WI Installed January 2018

Healing Tree     Steel and rose stone base sculpture installed in the roof top Healing Garden of Marshfield Clinic Hospital in Rice Lake, WI Installed May 2017

Walk Through Namakagon History     Additional historic figures fabricated from steel and stainless steel installed at the Town of Namakagon Hall, Namakagon (Cable), WI

Chief Namakagon and Little Girl Fishing     Installed November 2017

Little Boy Skiing     Installed December 2017

Prayer Path – First Lutheran Church     Steel female figure holding a stained glass lantern at the First Lutheran Church in Cumberland, WI – Installed November 2016

American Birkebeiner Start Area Donor Plaque     Steel sculpture depicting the Birkebeiner Warriors and white pine trees with propane torch. Fabricated in conjunction with Terry Tansey. Cable, WI Installed August 2016

Three Stages of Woman     Steel, stained glass with copper accents refurbished from the original sculpture created in 1983 and donated to the College of St. Scholastica. Science Building, Duluth, MN Installed December 2015.

International Paralympics World Championship podium sculpture     Steel, stainless steel, wood created in conjunction with Terry Tansey to celebrate the World Championship of the International ParalympicsCable, WI Installed January 2015

Wisdom Heralding Peace     Selected by a competitive process to create a stainless steel and boulder sculpture for the centennial celebration and new science building addition at The College of St. Scholastica, Duluth, MN. Unveiled, June 22, 2012.

Spirit of the Ojibwe: Images of Lac Courte Oreilles Elder’s      Book co-authored by Sara Balbin with 32 of her oil portraits, biographies, maps, historical essay, Ojibwe language glossary and references for further readings. Published by Holy Cow! Press, Duluth, MN. Released June, 2012.

Make-a-Wish Foundation of America and Make-a-Wish Foundation of Wisconsin     To create the major donor awards for 2008 thru 2012.

Birkie Honor Wall     Commissioned by the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation at the “00” Rest Cabin, Seeley, WI; 7?x 12?x 3′ wide steel, stainless steel and boulder sculpture to display the names of event founders and significant participants. Dedication, winter 2011.

Dragonfly Resurrection     Commissioned by the Calvary Lutheran Church in Brookfield, WI. 5’x 2′ wide stainless steel and boulder sculpture for the prayer garden. Dedicated July, 2010.

Flowing Waters     Commissioned by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for presentation as awards for Decade of River Successes 2010: Lakeshore Natural Resources Partnership” summer 2010.

Sun Dog     Private commission by Mimi Trudeau of River Falls, WI; 6’x 2′ wide stainless steel and brass memorial. Dedicated June, 2010.

Pam Troxel Memorial     Private commission by John Olson as a memorial for a noted Wisconsin Timber Wolf Alliance advocate. Installed at the Sigrid Olson Institute, Northland College, Ashland, WI; 7’x 3′ wide stainless steel sculpture. Dedicated October, 2009.

Lumberjack World Championship 50th Anniversary Tribute     Commissioned by the Lumberjack World Championship, Hayward, WI; 25′ tall sculpture depicting an 8′ diameter steel globe installed on three 14’tall x 8’wide century old pine logs. Dedicated summer 2009.

Books Pollinate the Mind     Commissioned by Linda Graham of Bee Hive Botanicals in Hayward, WI as a gift to the Sherman and Ruth Weiss Community Library. 7′ x 4′ x 4′ steel and stainless steel sculpture on boulders. Dedicated summer 2008.

Come Fly with Me     Private commissioned by Dr. Tim and Julie Louis at Eagle Knob on Lake Owen in Cable. WI. A four sculpture installation spanning 150 feet depicting a family of eagles mounted atop century old white pines. Featuring a 20′ tall 25′ wide wing span spread eagle. Dedicated summer 2009.

Paddling on the Namakagon, Gateway to History     Series, public sculpture commissioned by the Cable-Namakagon Historical Museum, Cable, WI; 5’x 8’x 3′ steel, stainless steel and glacial boulders, winter 2007.

Reunion     Public sculpture, Children’s Memorial Garden, Prairie Home Cemetery, Waukesha, WI; 12′ x 5’x 5′ stainless steel multi-figure family representation with Lake Superior wave washed rock, fall 2007.

Eagle for Nels     Public memorial sculpture commissioned by Glenn and Karen Jacobson, Art Park, Wittenberg, WI; 8′ x 8′ x 5′ steel, stainless steel, locally harvested granite boulder, summer 2007.

Imagine     Public sculpture, commissioned by Hans & Lynn Rasmussen, and recipient of grant from the Experimental Air Craft Association (EAA) Kenosha, WI, Cable Union Airport, Cable, WI. Stainless steel, glacial boulders, summer 2006.

Fly Fishing on the Namakagon River, Gateway to History     Series, public sculpture commissioned by the Cable-Namakagon Historical Museum, Cable, WI. Steel, stainless steel and glacial boulders, spring 2005.

American Birkebeiner, Courage, Endurance & Perseverance     Public sculpture commission by the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation, Cable, WI. Steel, stainless steel, brass, wood and rock, winter 2003.

Rivers to the People     Public sculpture commission, Spooner Memorial Library, Spooner, WI. Steel, stainless steel, waterfall sculpture in a pond setting, summer 2002.

Flight of the Four Seasons     Public sculpture commission, Chippewa Valley Bank, Cable, WI; steel, stainless steel, stained glass, June 2001.

Hall of Elders     Oil portrait series commissioned by the Lac Courte Oreilles Tribal Governing Board. 1979 to present, series includes thirty-two allegorical oil portraits of tribal elders. Historical portrait series published in “Spirit of the Ojibwe: Images of Lac Courte Oreilles Elders”, Holly Cow Press, Duluth, MN summer 2012.

The Eagle is Landing     Private commission by Dr. Tim and Julie Louis at Eagle Knob, Lake Owen, Cable, WI; 32′ x 10′ x 5′ multi-staged steel and boulder waterfall, summer 1996.

Dragon’s Flight     Commissioned by the Cable Natural History Museum, Cable, WI; 12′ x 4?x 4′ stainless steel outdoor installation, summer 1993.

GRANTS

  • Recipient of grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and Wisconsin Arts Board for a steel and century old white pine sculpture, celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Lumberjack World Championships, Hayward, WI, summer 2009.
  • Recipient of grant from the Outagamie Charitable Foundation to publish Spirit of the Ojibwe: Images of Lac Courte Oreilles, 1997 to 2012.
  • Recipient of grant from the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), Oshkosh,WI for Imagine, stainless steel, glacial boulders, summer 2006.
  • Recipient of grant support from the Chequamegon Bay Arts Council for Fly Fishing on The Namakagon, summer 2005.
  • Recipient of grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board, 2001.
  • Recipient of grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, 1981.
  • Recipient of grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board, 1981.
  • Recipient of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, 1979.
  • Recipient of grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board, 1979.

EXHIBIT HIGHLIGHTS

Penokee: Explore the Iron Hills
Traveling group exhibit of artworks about Wisconsin’s Penokee Range. Capital Rotunda, Madison, WI. June 2 – 10, 2012. Northern Great Lakes Visitor’s Center, Ashland, WI, June 23, 2012 – Feb 1, 2013.

Spirit of the Ojibwe: Images of Lac Courte Oreilles Elder’s
Exhibit of thirteen oil portraits from the thirty-two original Hall of Elders series sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, Wisconsin Arts Board and LCO Tribal Government. Duluth Art Institute, Duluth, MN, June 1 thru August 30, 2012.

Nine Women Standing Tall
Eclectic Modes of Artistry. Group show by the Superior Artists Gallery Cooperative; www.superiorartists.com Washburn Cultural Center, Washburn, WI, June 2 – 30, 2012.

Flowing Waters
LaPointe Center Art Guild & Gallery, LaPointe, WI on Madeline Island. A two woman show with Seri Demorest, photographer, July 2011.

Superior Watersheds exhibit
Northern Great Lakes Visitors Center, Ashland, WI. Group show with Superior Artists Gallery Cooperative members, Summer 2011.

Art of the Reclaimed
Blue Lake Gallery, Duluth, MN showing of sculptures created with found metal objects, Spring 2011.

Art, Blogging and Peace
A multi-visual arts exhibit at the Washburn Cultural Center and Museum, Washburn, WI, winter 2010.

Between Fences
Photography Exhibit participant at the Cable / Namakagon Historical Museum, held in conjunction with the Smithsonian Institute Between Fences Exhibit at the Cable Natural History Museum funded in part by the Wisconsin Humanities Council with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, summer 2008.

Environment Reflections
Four artist group show at Art Beat Gallery, Hayward, WI, featuring new items in the Earth’s ARTifacts – Lost & Found collection, steel, stainless steel, found industrial machine components, winter 2007.

Dark to Light
Group show at the Superior Artist’s Gallery, Washburn, WI. December, 2006 featuring Earth’s ARTifacts – Lost & Found steel and stainless steel, rock, found industrial machine components, 2006.

Skins of Color
Mixed media, sculpture series (leather, wood, oil), solo exhibit, Seeley Mercantile Gallery, Seeley, WI, 2003.

Art From Lake Country
Group exhibit, Duluth Art Institute, Duluth, MN, 2002.

Cultural Diversity
Group exhibit and permanent collection, University of Wisconsin Superior, WI, 2001.

Artists Choice group exhibit
Wisconsin Arts Board, Department of Administration Gallery, Madison, WI, 2000.

Madeline Island Sculpture Invitational
Participant and group exhibit partially sponsored by the Wisconsin Arts Board, at La Pointe, WI, summer 1993 – 2007.

Invitational show; Sara Balbin of Cuba and Bill Black of Minneapolis
Kruk Gallery of the University of Wisconsin Superior, WI. at state conference on cultural diversity, April 1999.

Participant in an invitational, international art exhibit held in Pinar del Rio, Cuba
Sponsored by the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC) and the Tweed Museum of Duluth, MN, June 1999.

Exhibited with artist Humberto Hernandez of Pinar del Rio, Cuba
Unique Images, Wright Benner Gallery, St. Paul, MN, June 1998.

Skins of Color
Mixed media sculpture series (leather, wood, oil) exhibited at the Albrecht / Kemper Museum of Art in St. Joseph, MO, April – June 1997.

The Hall of Elders
Portrait series of the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe, exhibited at the St. Joseph Historical Museum, and the National Pony Express Museum, St. Joseph, MO, 1997.

First North American Invitational
Art exhibit in Pinar del Rio, Cuba since 1959. Sponsored by the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC). April of 1997.

Alumni group exhibit at Northland College, Ashland, WI, 1996.

Alumni group exhibit at University of Wisconsin Superior, Superior, WI, 1996.

Skins of Color
Group exhibit at Wood Street Gallery, Chicago, IL, 1995.

Skins of Color
Three woman show, exhibited leather sculptural series at the Wood Street Gallery, Chicago, IL, 1994.

LIFE HIGHLIGHTS

  • Featured as one of four interviews in a Four Corners story by Fox 21 News, Duluth, MN, winter 2011.
  • Featured sculptural artist on www.portalwisconsin.org
  • Television documentary of Dragonfly Studio-Sara Balbin, Fall/Winter 2008, Eyewitness News, Channel 5, On the Road with Jason Davis “Destination: Northwestern Wisconsin”.
  • Co-founder and marketing member of the Lac Courte Oreilles Arts and Culture Association, Hayward, WI, 2007-2012.
  • Cable-Namakagon Historical Museum, curator, Cable, WI, 2006-2012.
  • Co-founded two not-for profit card businesses to market the art of individuals with disabilities; Ventures Unlimited, Inc., Hayward, and New Horizons North, Ashland, WI, 2004-2012.
  • Telemark Educational Foundation, Board of Directors, Cable, WI, 2003-2006.
  • National Council of La Raza Annual Conference: Selected as the Midwest’s visual Hispanic artist to lecture with three other panelists in the disciplines of arts, Milwaukee, WI, summer 2001.
  • Public Television documentary of Dragonfly Studio-Sara Balbin by “Venture North” of Duluth, MN, televised 1998-2009.
  • Co-founder and President; Cable-Hayward Area Arts Council (CHARAC), Hayward/Cable, WI, 1996-1999.
  • Co-founder and President; The Chequamegon Fine Arts Festival, 1992-1995.

REFERENCES

Professional references are available on request.

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