SUMMIT, NJ — As a child, Summit native Sarah Walko was incredibly creative. She was obsessed with the arts and used her imagination to escape from an otherwise mundane and sometimes rough world.
Today, having solidified her love of the arts into a career including directing, writing and more, Walko has vowed to help others use artistic endeavors to lift themselves up and out of hardship just as she often had to for herself. It’s a narrative she chronicles in an essay in “Sacred Promise,” a new anthology of essays by 36 women from around the country who have achieved their dreams and want to help others do the same.
The book, curated by Tererai Trent, is a compilation of stories of women who, at one point or another, committed themselves to changing their lives and following their ambitions. Trent, a renowned educator and humanitarian, described the book as revelatory for readers, with the goal of starting a trend of self-discovery in women everywhere.
“This collection crystalizes the notion that how we choose to craft our life, choreograph our journey, chart our course and create our dreams is ours to own,” Trent said in a press release. “‘Sacred Promise’ shows us how we are all connected, threaded and woven into the fabric of the world.”
Walko’s essay in the book describes the challenges she faced early on in life and the path she followed to achieve her artistic aspirations. When life kept throwing obstacles in her way, Walko said it was art that kept her motivated. Walko now spreads the power of art to others.
“I believe in art not as a thing but as a way,” Walko said. “My sacred promise now is doing everything I can to push the arts forward in the world.”
One’s sacred promise, Walko explained, is something that has to come from the heart. It has to be fueled by passion and positive energy. Art, she said, fulfills this purpose, and she said she hoped that the book would encourage others to discover their own methods of helping themselves and helping others.
“I think it’s a two-step process,” Walko said in a press release. “First, what is the thing that makes your heart sing and breaks your heart also — that’s usually where your passion and your purpose both reside. Then secondly ask yourself, ‘How is this elevating not just myself but others as well?’”
Walko said she elevates others through her art every day, working as the director of education and community engagement at the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey. There, she said, she helps foster self-expression in those who most need it, hosting art therapy sessions and various community outreach programs for those affected by trauma, anxiety, special needs and more.
And after the traumatic couple of years that the pandemic presented, Walko said art is more necessary than ever to inspire people and to help them see that a brighter future is ahead. It’s the same thinking that helped her pursue art in the first place, harnessing curiosity and passion to reach her goal.
“I think a takeaway for people is along the lines of the power of imagination,” Walko said. “It’s a very powerful tool for all of us to use. It’s healing.”
Much of Walko’s art, including her sculptures and other installations, reflects this sentiment. There is an ethereal, whimsical and contemplative feeling to her work.
Walko currently has work in two art exhibitions, including one that recently opened at the Valerie Goodman Gallery in Manhattan titled “From Urban Reverence to Urban Divergence.”
“Sacred Promise” is published by Women Changing the World Press. Proceeds from the book will go to the Tererai Trent International Foundation, working to ensure equal opportunity and quality education for all children in rural Africa. The book was released on Monday, June 27. For more information or to purchase the book, visit wcwpress.com.
Photos Courtesy of Sarah Walko and Visual Arts Center of NJ