ARTIST SARA ÖDMAN
Artist & Art Director · Lyon, France
Sara
Ödman
From Swedish prairies to Paris to Beijing — and back to the blank canvas that started it all
Sara Ödman grew up on the south-west coast of Sweden, surrounded by prairies and the ocean, in a family where creativity was simply the way things were done. Her father painted — colourful, energetic canvases. Her brother Fredrik makes photographs where imagination has no limits. Her mother worked with textile and decoration. Art was not an aspiration in the Ödman household. It was the air.
In her early twenties Sara moved to Paris, where she spent a decade studying and working. A Master's degree in Art Direction from the prestigious ESAG Penninghen led to a career spanning window display design, brand identity, packaging, and luxury fashion. A stint working in Beijing introduced her to textile and print — a passion that stayed. Then, at a point of genuine change, she left her position as Art Director at a luxury company to devote herself fully to painting and freelance projects.
Today she works as an artist and art director in Lyon, painting large canvases in acrylic, building compositions from layers of colour and shape, and trusting — as she puts it — that the empty paper is already the beginning of the answer.
01 · Origins
To create is an infinite part of you — tell us about that.
To create is an infinite part of me and has always been — I've loved to illustrate since I can remember. The empty paper inspires me; I always get my energy flowing just by the thought of colouring that white space. My father painted a lot when I was younger — colourful pieces, full of energy. My brother Fredrik is a photographer and artist creating visuals where the imagination has no boundaries, and my mother has always been very creative, working with textile and decoration. I definitely feel that imagination and creativity are my fuels for feeling alive.
02 · Inspirations
What are your greatest inspirations or influences?
Surrounded by the prairies and the ocean my entire childhood, nature is a big part of my roots and my source of inspiration. It's an endless treasure with combinations of colours and shapes — and I love to play with that in mind when creating abstract encounters in my paintings.
I always feel passionate by the idea of creating a new piece from something within me that can affect someone else in a positive way. Inspiring destinies, design, fashion, travel, and space for dreams and new goals are all things that inspire me and boost my energy.
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I feel proud listening to myself and what I believe in — and not letting doubt or fear shape my path.
— Sara Ödman
03 · Process
Tell us a bit about your creative process.
I start with sketches, composing different shapes and colours until a composition catches my attention. Then I start working on my canvas, building it up with different layers of colour, working almost exclusively with acrylic and brushes. I take a break, two steps back — deciding what to change and what to keep — until I find a balance and I'm satisfied with the result.
I love to work on big canvases. That's when I feel the most comfortable and free. I feel proud listening to myself and what I believe in and not letting doubt or fear shape my path.
04 · The World
How has this year changed your creativity, or how you see the world moving forward?
When the pandemic started, I was already in a period of change. I had quit my job as an Art Director for a luxury company to work only with my art and freelance projects. 2020 did not change my life drastically, but as for many of us, we suddenly had to slow down, change our rhythm, and see life from a different angle — which is often a good thing.
It turned out to be a good year creatively. The pieces fell into their places and I found the time and inspiration to develop my artwork in a way that I believe in and where I feel perfectly at home.
The Journey
Sweden
Roots
South-west coast. Prairies, ocean, a family of artists. The source that never runs dry.
Paris
10 Years
ESAG Penninghen MA. Luxury brands, window displays, identity, packaging, prêt-à-porter.
Beijing
Encounter
First encounter with textile and print design. A passion that never left.
Lyon
Home
Painting full time. Large canvases, acrylic, layers of colour. Finally, perfectly at home.
Nature as an endless treasure of colours and shapes
Ödman's palette carries the memory of the Swedish coast — ochres and terracottas for the dry summer grasses, cool sage for the pine forests, watery blue for the Atlantic horizon, and rose for the long Nordic evenings. Every composition is an abstract encounter with that landscape, re-read through the lens of Paris, Beijing, and Lyon.
In Her Own Words
"I grew up on the south-west coast of Sweden, in a family where art has always been a way to express yourself. Surrounded by the prairies and the ocean my entire childhood, nature is naturally my biggest source of inspiration."
