I am in love with the movement of our working bodies: as we mother, as we carry heavy objects, as we do dishes, as we gather courage, as we caretake, as we age, as we learn. I am in love with the sound of our human voices and with the art of telling our stories to one another.

I make artistic work that seeks truth in these expressions: through the stories we tell with our voices and with our bodies. I make process-focused, collaborative work. I believe in a creative practice of making more than anything else: it is how I explore questions, find truth and beauty, catalyze change, and transform experience into meaning.

I am descended from German-Danish farmers, from teachers.  I am a first-generation Alaskan. Salmon and rainwater grew my body. I spent my childhood in Sitka and on Killisnoo Island. I live on Taas Daa (Lemesurier Island) in Icy Strait. I am so grateful to be a lifelong guest in Tlingit Aaní, and to make my home in Xunaa Káawu.

Bio

Sarah Campen is an Alaskan interdisciplinary artist, teaching artist, and community organizer working at the intersection of storytelling, movement, and place. Her work spans choreography, audio storytelling, installation, and film, exploring the complexities of human connections to land and each other.

Campen takes a documentary approach to movement, building choreography rooted in the physical labor of Alaskan life. Her dance films, including Salmon Dance—winner of Best Dance Documentary at the 2023 PlatArtístic Dancefilm Festival—blend movement with documentary storytelling, offering intimate portraits of Alaskan life.

As co-host and producer of A Piece of Kake podcast, Sarah amplifies stories of community and culture from Ḵeex̱’ Ḵwáan. Her audio projects, including When the Salmon Spoke and Aan Yátx’u Sáani: Noble People of the Land, highlight Indigenous Tlingít and Haida voices and histories.

Sarah is deeply engaged in community practice, using art to bridge community needs with policy development. She has facilitated collaborative land management initiatives across Alaska and led artist residencies statewide. A lifelong Alaskan, she is committed to using the arts to celebrate and strengthen the life and culture of Alaska.

Sarah is the recipient of a 2020 Individual Artist Award from the Rasmuson Foundation and a 2018 Catalyst Fellowship with the Center for Performance & Civic Practice. She has trained with Pilobolus and Trisha Brown Dance Company and holds a bachelorʼs degree from Brown University.