By now you’ve noticed: the second floor is sporting some color. Popping out from the previously barren white walls are some truly outstanding original works of art. What may come as more of a surprise than this makeover, however, is that the art is the work of one of our own: a 1L by the name of Sara Lederman.
I recently sat down with Lederman to discuss her art in the Jurist office on the second floor, just 15 feet from a painting of hers with orange patterns streaking across a dark, stormy-grey background. Lederman rushed in right before our 5:30 p.m. appointment, slightly out of breath from tracking down a UPS guy. (Her apartment’s buzzer is broken and she didn’t want to miss an important package.)
Figuring she would still need a moment or two to recover, I thought I’d ask her a relatively easy question first. “So, how long have you been painting?” I expected an answer along the lines of, “for forever,” or “since I was about 4.” Most intriguingly, however, Lederman, now settled into her seat, told me she’d only been painting for a year.
This is truly incredible considering the quality of her work. Lederman did explain, however, she has long been fascinated with certain patterns. She recalled that at a young age she was mesmerized by the way ink would run on paper (“I was the only kid in class using a fountain pen”). This might also account for Lederman’s style, which she describes as “anti-perfect”; no fine lines or traditional shapes appear in her paintings.
As our interview progressed, Lederman made sure to stress that, “I don’t think I’m an artist.” She instead insisted on classifying herself more as an “experimenter.” Though at first taken back by this response, I began to understand what she was getting at. Many of the paintings hanging on this floor incorporate a multitude of mediums and have countless layers. Lederman continued to experiment with her paintings even after many artists in her position would have packed up their brushes and declared their work complete. She told me, “It takes a lot for me to leave something alone.”
Having her works displayed at the school, she said, is an experience she won’t soon forget. In one sense, Lederman feels “totally naked” considering the product of one of her most personal enterprises is displayed for all her classmates to see. On the other hand, Lederman wanted students to have “something pretty to look at” because “school can be depressing.”
Upon finishing scribbling down my notes from our interview, Lederman got up to leave for a panel discussion later that evening. Alone, I thought of the greater significance of Lederman’s art hanging throughout the second floor. It’s important that all of us have something like Lederman has—something that gives us an identity outside of being a law student, clinic member or journal contributor. What greater reminder could we have then Lederman’s art hanging throughout one of the busiest floors in the building? And let’s not forget that it gives something pretty to look at.