ONENESS is a visual and aural exploration of connectivity through isolation, brought to life through Bach’s Goldberg Variations. Sarah created 32 works of art, one for each variation. This travelling exhibit can be displayed in the lobby and on a digital screen as part of a post-show talk back. 

While my primary artistic channel involves interpreting works for classical piano, I also have an interest in the process and execution of translating into visual art my innermost thoughts, feelings, and imaginings that happen while playing the piano. The Goldberg Variations begins with a simple Aria that Bach explores and transforms through 30 variations before returning to the original theme, unchanged on the page from the first pages of the work, yet changed through the experience of the previous variations.

The thought that one solitary theme can carry so much potential has especially resonated with me. Subsequently, the art form of collage emerged as my form of expression in ONENESS. I chose this medium to mirror the contrapuntal lines of Bach’s writing: separate items which are gathered together to create a new whole. I endeavoured to keep the textures, colours, and motion of the music incorporated, as if I were playing the art onto the canvas with my fingers. --Sarah Hagen