BIO

Shara Lunon is a transdisciplinary artist based in Brooklyn, NY. She is the product of the evolution of Black American musical traditions. As a poet, vocalist, composer, and improviser, her art finds the ethereal in the chaotic. With voice as the foundation, Shara’s music is an exploration of text and sound that seamlessly weaves through the ongoing relationship of struggle, resilience, and resolution. Her goal is to challenge lassitude and in its place, instill hope.

Shara has collaborated with artists including Darius Jones, Ches Smith, Asia Stewart, Milagros Art Collective, Chris Williams, Lester St. Louis, Luke Stewart, Lesley Mok, Laura Cocks, Joy Guidry, and the International Contemporary Ensemble. Her work has been featured in The Gothamist and has won residencies with OneBeat, Papillon Farm, Amanda + James Pollinate residency, and Metropolis Ensemble Flame Keeper. Shara has also won awards from Audiofemme Agenda Grant, MATA Presents Grant to premiere her work “Bitter Fruits” at Roulette Intermedium. Currently, Shara is working as a session artist with Ches Smith, Darian Donovan Thomas, and Innova Recording Label and the Black Science Fiction Series to release new solo works in the spring of 2024.

ARTIST STATEMENT

Sound is my fundamental connection to the world and my lived experiences, embodying the deferred culture of erasure, transformation, and diversity. My transdisciplinary practice involves a generative and improvisatory process, creating visual, physical, sonic, and performance-based artworks. Informed by my ethnicity, my work becomes a living manifestation of Black cultural traditions—music, history, and poetry.

A throughline in my work is the experimental nature deeply rooted in analyzing how we cope, contradict, defy, and reshape society. Physical and installation work portrays themes of messaging and quotidien through color, repetition, found objects, and self-constructed electronic sonic creations. Engaging audiences with recognizable materials of Black cultural significance, I aim to instill veneration of memory, enhance the progression of prosperity tactics, and challenge societal constructs by investigating the possibility of what we can be.

As an emerging artist navigating the unpredictable landscape of being Black in America, I focus on improvisation, capturing raw emotion, vocal expression, and the essence of words. With improvisation, I explore the lyrical and guttural sounds of my body, deconstructing text into sonic elements that convey attitudes, attributes, and connotations. Patterns, repetition, and diverse notation techniques amplify the conscious and subconscious impact of my compositions. Electronics enhance these elements, synthesizing an immersive soundscape that serves as the basis for other mediums including video art, sculpture, and poetry.

Guided by a philosophy of congregation and community, my work is rooted in the healing concept of Sankofa—reaching back to move forward. As the curator of Heavy Florals at Sister's Brooklyn, I've established a safe space for community exploration, featuring non-white artists and allies on an accessible sliding-scale pricing model. These endeavors align with my mission to build an artistic ecosystem rooted in inclusivity and abundance, fostering a shared human experience.

In my artistic symphony, I aim to clarify my unique voice in the interdisciplinary art space, emphasizing the transformative impact of my work. Deeply rooted in my identity and journey, my creative process seeks to engage and resonate, contributing to the ongoing dialogue of cultural rebirth and healing.