Sarah Güsten-Marr was born in Liberia, West Africa, in 1970. Orphaned as a baby, she was adopted by loving German parents, who were working in the country. She was brought up together with her two older sisters in West Africa, Germany, USA, and Italy.The family educated all three girls to become citizens of the world. Sarah is fluent in three languages and a prodigiously talented artist.

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After her school years in Washington D.C. and Rome, Güsten-Marr studied at the Academia di Moda, Rome and at the Istituto Europeo di Design di Roma. She then went on to Winchester School of Art in Great Britain and graduated from the American College of the Applied Arts in London.

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Sarah Güsten-Marr is an extensive world traveller who believes that, “travelling is finding.” Always keen to learn from the world around her, to this day, Sarah Güsten-Marr continues to travel the world finding inspiration in the people she meets. For Güsten Marr, it is a privilege to experience different cultures, to understand their differences and learn from their teachings.

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Sarah has travelled extensively all her life including a six-month stay on an Aboriginal reservation, where she made friends with the Aboriginal families and their children and studied their art as well as sharing their lives.

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Sarah is currently living in a breathtakingly beautiful converted North Yorkshire farmhouse, complete with tractor and Highland cattle, in the Vale of York with her two children Rolf (named after her father) and Josephine. Her art studio and gallery, nestles at the foot of the Howardian Hills.

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Sarah Gusten-Marr is a truly inspirational woman, whose art reflects her warmth, intelligence and love of life. As her friend Margaret Sentamu, wife of the Archbishop of York, says: ‘The moment Sarah walked into our lives when we arrived in Yorkshire, we knew we had met a kindred spirit. Here is a woman full of life, hope and – above all – generosity of spirit. These qualities have not been dented by life’s challenges and setbacks.

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Sarah is gifted in so many ways and is using those gifts to give life to others. Her passion for those in need the world over, but especially on the African sub-continent, comes through in all that she does. Her multicultural antenna is well and truly honed, as is her desire for all to be one, irrespective of skin colour or social background,’ says Mrs Sentamu.

 

Source: Robert Beaumont - Living North