Sarah May

London-based artist Sarah May operates at the intersection of contemporary dance, architecture, and fine art. Born of British and Chinese heritage her large-scale ink paintings act as architectural mappings of movement, tracing the hidden emotional frequencies of the body across space and time.
The artist’s unique formal training underpins their deeply structural yet fluid style. Having studied at The Bartlett School of Architecture (UCL) and the Laban Conservatoire of Contemporary Dance, Sarah possesses an elite understanding of both spatial physics and choreographic momentum. She views the canvas not as a flat surface, but as a live, architectural environment.
The creative process is rooted in a ritualistic, meditative practice: sitting in extended, silent reflection before an emptiness, waiting for a singular moment of profound internal alignment. What follows is a sudden, breathtaking burst of physical expression. In a matter of breaths, the artist dances across the surface, utilising the full physical range of her limbs and torso to translate momentum into broad, calligraphic brushstrokes.
Merging ancient Classical Chinese Sumi ink traditions with Western contemporary spatial theory, each monumental piece functions as a silent...

Laban School of Contemporary Dance
Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL