MY SHARK BRAIN

ABOUT

• Born in Pasadena, California, Sarah Risko is a Japanese-Mexican American artist and designer based in Austin, Texas. Originating her art practice in dramatic baroque-style oil paintings, she has transformed into an artist who moves fluidly between disciplines. As a multidisciplinary artist, she explores the emotional terrain and inherent connection between women and the natural world, intertwining the culture of her ancestors and stories shared among the women in her family.

  Risko’s artistic journey began at the Austin School for the Performing and Visual Arts, where early training in theater shaped her approach to image-making. She later earned her Associate of Arts in Studio Art from Blinn College and is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design from Bellevue University.

  Through painting and mixed media, Risko creates scenes in which the female figure and landscape engage in meaningful conversation. Her work explores sexuality, autonomy, and vulnerability, examining how identity and environment weave into each other. Nostalgia serves as a central force in her practice, shaping imagery that reflects both memory and myth. Rooted in personal history and cultural perspective, her work seeks to uncover the shared language between body, land, and time.