Sara Zigman has been painting the town red—and green and blue and yellow! The artist and mom of four has her own design business, TLZdesigns, and last year alone, she provided illustrations for the regional Hello, There! Books line; was commissioned to paint a mural in The Loop for the Stella Artois event, The Art of the Chalice; and had her first solo art show at Cottleville Synergy Center. Somehow she also found the time to move, and we got a look inside at the bright, bold designs of Zigman’s Wildwood home.

T&S | Are you from St. Louis originally? 
Sara Zigman | I was born here but raised in Michigan. I can’t answer the question of where I went to high school, but I feel like a St. Louisan. Everyone born in St. Louis is implanted with a chip, and the Arch is a giant magnet that pulls you back, whether you want it to or not!

T&S | What were you looking for in a house? 
SZ | I’ve moved three times, but not very far. I wanted my son to keep attending the same school and stay near his friends. My daughters are all in college, but he’s a little guy in second grade. I needed a house big enough for the girls to have a home base and for him to have his own space. This house was renovated before I bought it. As much as I love design and changing things, I just couldn’t do it on my own right now. It’s like a new house but not, which was exactly what I wanted.

T&S | Have you made any changes?
SZ | I put built-ins throughout the house. I have very modern tastes, and in every house I’ve owned, I’ve never had an entertainment center or dresser. I use built-ins for display, storage and entertainment. I also redid the staircase. Before, it had a very dated, wooden stair rail. Correy Evrard of Evrard Development built a custom staircase for me that is much more modern and fits the aesthetic of the house. He’s an incredibly talented craftsman and a rising star in town! I redid some of the kitchen and have made some design changes like adding pops of color. I’ve really been getting into wallpaper—something I never thought would happen! I’ve used it to create focal walls.

T&S | Did you approach the interior of the house the way you do your art? 
SZ | When I walk into a space, I immediately start thinking about the possibilities. As soon as I walked in, I knew it was the house for me. Even though I’ve only been here a couple of months, I just jumped right in to get as much done as possible, and that’s very much how I approach art. It’s what I do for a living, but it’s my passion and therapy as well. When painting, I’ll have a vision at 3 a.m. and obsess about it until I get it done. It just flows out, and the whole house is an ode to that. I’ve done everything on the main floor, but I need to tackle upstairs and downstairs next.

T&S | Where does your inspiration come from?
SZ | I’ve always been into design. My parents raised me to appreciate mid-century and modern aesthetics, and I love artists like Matisse and Calder. I’m really attracted to color, but I’ve been doing more things in black and white. I can appreciate other types of art like pastels, but bold prints and full-depth color appeal to me, even with neutrals. My bedroom is almost completely black and white; it’s a more calming palette, but it still makes a bold impression. Everyone thought I was kind of nuts when I painted everything but the trim in my dining room black, but I love it! Take risks if you can. There’s almost nothing you can’t undo. In my design work, I like to push people to do something unexpected. Everything doesn’t need to be traditional and done in ‘blah’ color palettes. Homeowners shouldn’t be afraid to try something new. I do a lot of murals, including large-scale ones around St. Louis. Outdoor and street art are things I’m trying to instill in our city. I also am collaborating with the Saint Louis Fashion Fund. Color, texture, textiles, street art—they all get my creative juices flowing. I’ll wake up in the middle of the night and go to my studio. It’s a blessing and a curse, having it in my home.

T&S | Do you have a favorite piece? 
SZ | There are two really large paintings with poured stripes of color. I’ve had a lot of interest in those, but I’ll probably never sell them. I painted them when my girls were little. They’re triplets, so I didn’t get to go out much. I’d gone to an art fair and had dinner plans, but suddenly, I was crazy inspired and couldn’t wait. I went home and didn’t have any blank canvases, so I just started painting over some that I never really loved. I spent all night pouring paint over and over. It was like waking up from a dream and trying to remember the details; I had to finish them. I just love them. That’s the height of inspiration, when I just have this idea and have to get it done. I’m doing a series of painted spheres that I call marbles. I had an art opening in November, and even though everything was done, I had this crazy idea and had to stop everything to make sure they got into the show. For the Fashion Fund collaboration, I made a series to match the spring collection of Ruben Reuel’s Demestik clothing line.

T&S | What is your favorite space in the house? 
SZ | I think the great room. I love the large built-in—California Closets told me it’s the tallest they’ve ever done—and the staircase. I also can see through the whole house from there. Sometimes I feel bad having my own artwork up, but then I walk through and feel happy. Even when it’s cloudy and gray, I still have color popping. That’s what I need: clean lines, design and color!