Artist’s Bio:
Sonja Plungis (b. 1996) is a multi-media artist, illustrator, and puppeteer native to and currently based in Takoma Park, Maryland, a small town on the border of Washington, DC, known as “the Berkeley of The East”. Her childhood spent in close proximity to the seat of power in the United States engendered in her an early understanding of the need for political activism, a driving force in her practice today.
At ten, Plungis underwent her first of two major brain-surgeries at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, resulting in a temporary loss of motor skills and depth perception which she received physical therapy for in the form of still-life drawing classes. She believes studying art was invaluable to learning to navigate her disability, and knows first hand of the power of art to change lives– disabled or not.
As a disabled artist, Plungis has found resilience and strength from overcoming barriers to her artistic career. In 2016 when a disability flare-up caused her to put her study of Sculpture+ Expanded Media at The Cleveland Institute of Art on hold, she threw herself into self advocacy for her disability and building her practice through formal and informal studies. Learning to navigate the art world and the world of disability simultaneously is something she is proud of.
After hospitalization in 2023 for a particularly difficult disability flare-up, Plungis turned her attention towards a medium that always fascinated her– puppetry. In 2024, she began work at the world-renowned Bread and Puppet Theater in Glover, Vermont, where she has worn many hats as a performer, puppeteer, and visual artist.
Plungis’s painting and sculpture work have been shown in Washington, D.C., Maryland, Ohio, California, and Vermont. She has worked as an illustrator for book covers, political writings, and business logos, and as a designer for DC local businesses. She has worked as a puppeteer in Washington, D.C, Glover, Vermont, and Baltimore, Maryland, where she uses puppetry as a medium for political activism.
Artist's Statement
As a disabled artist, I approach my work through a therapeutic lens – both in the lofty, metaphysical sense ("Art heals"), but also literally. I first learned to draw after my brain surgeries, when I had lost motor skills and depth perception.
I could no longer write, so I learned to draw.
An eleven-year-old girl with a conté-stained eyepatch and a bald spot around her scar, I struggled to hold my hands steady enough to capture the exact ellipse of a flower vase.
As my artistic skills improved, I regained some of what I had lost - the use of my hands, writing, the depth perception necessary to be free of the hated eye patch.
This knowledge of art as a healing tool is central to my practice– both in my own internal healing through my first love, painting, and explorations of societal healing in my work in puppetry.
Through emphasis on perfecting geometric pattern and color theory, I strive to push past the limitations of my disability. The motor skills required to create balanced, intricate compositions serve as reminders to me as to how far I have come. My focus on botanical subject matter harkens back to a time when I would stare at verdant canopies over my head to try to make sense of my temporary vision impairment. Through my focus on floral forms I am able to delve into my love of color theory as well as focus on a motif of auto-biographical significance as the daughter of a flower farmer. Through use of jubilant color palates and joyful, sometimes humorous subject matter, I strive to make my art a personal act of celebration.
That emotional philosophy carries over to my performance work, though with the added element of catharsis. I use puppetry as a means of political engagement– it is an exceptional medium with which to lampoon, caricature, and bombast. I believe that political strength can be derived from the ability to laugh at those in power, to ridicule those who choose to burn the world. As with my approach to painting and personal growth, I believe the act of healing through art is best achieved when it is done out of joy. It is my belief that healing is something worth celebrating.