Pittsburgh Man To Be Smithsonian Artist-In-Residence

PITTSBURGH, PA — Sagar Kamath's artistic journey has taken him from Pittsburgh's Creative and Performing Arts high school, to the University of Pittsburgh, to the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore -- and soon to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Asian Art in Washington.

Kamath, 24, of Greenfield, will be the artist-in-residence for the museum's Centennial Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Festival, which runs May 1-14. It's an accomplishment he never imagined occurring when he and his family left Bangalore, India and settled in Pittsburgh 20 years ago.

"It's very humbling. I am very grateful," Kamath told Patch. "I was at the right place at the right time, it seems."

The path leading to the Smithsonian began in the halls of CAPA, where he was a visual arts major. He said he developed a headstrong attitude by listening to the advice of instructor Shannon Pultz, who chaired the department.

"Ms. Pultz instilled in my head that we shouldn't wait for opportunities to come to us - we should just barge through the door," Kamath said.

At Pitt, he painted and was involved in other artistic activities while obtaining a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. After being furloughed from his engineering job during the COVID-19 pandemic, he enrolled in the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore and next month will receive his master's degree in multidisciplinary art.

While pursuing his master's, Kamath began researching museums and what they mean in terms of social movements. He reached to several, including the Smithsonian, where he began communicating with a museum curator.

Around that time, Kamath began to explore using bamboo and banana leaves to create sculptures that naturally decay while on display. That drew interest from Smithsonian officials, who reached out to him while programming Centennial Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Festival.

As artist-in-residence, Kamath said he'll create bamboo and banana leaf sculptures that will dry and wilt will on display. He said he also plans to hold workshops for visitors to draw or write on additional leaves "to represent the intersections of identity and the passage of time" as individual stories are added to his art.

Kamath has strong artistic ties to Pittsburgh. Within the collective, Pinaka Art, formed by himself and his father, he has created public murals in Pittsburgh for Adda Coffee and Tea House. He also has participated in Unblurred: First Fridays on Penn, Art All Night and the Three Rivers Arts Festival.

He plans to renew those ties after the residency ends by having several shows here during the summer. But for now, his focus is squarely on the Smithsonian and an artistic achievement few people his age have achieved.

"This is an incredible opportunity," he said.