Artist Sarey Ruden, creator of Sareytales (Photo Cred: Erin Kirkland Photography)
About Sarey(tales)
The Art of Online Dating
Detroit-based artist Sarey Ruden’s project Sareytales is a collection of artwork inspired by the creepy, cruel and misogynistic messages she has received from men during her online dating journey.
By transforming the unsolicited messages she receives on dating apps such as Plenty of Fish,OKCupid, Match, Jdate and Tinder, into fearless and provocative works of contemporary feminist art, Sarey hopes to reframe the conversation around gender-based digital abuse.
What began as a form of artistic catharsis to help navigate the treacherous online dating landscape for a woman in her 30s has grown into something much larger.
Since it’s inception in late 2016, Sareytales has evolved into a platform which empowers other women to stand up to the misogyny and gender-based digital abuse that is so prevalent in the online dating world. Sarey’s art is sold in boutiques, pop-up shops, art fairs and subscription boxes, reaching thousands of people globally. Her work has been included in gender studies course discussions at Michigan State University and Texas Women’s University, as well as in research papers focusing on feminism and modern art. She also has participated in international art shows from Detroit to San Francisco, from Seattle to London, with more events and collaborations on the horizon.
Sareytales has become more than a pet project, it has become a movement. The message her art conveys is provocative yet relatable, and empowers others to stand up to the toxic masculinity, gaslighting, negging and other injustices all too common in the online dating world.
Join Sarey(tales) as she turns ugly into art, one text at a time.
“I consider the cis-het men of dating apps my muses, and they inspire me daily to continue creating, sharing and naming the systems of oppression that uphold the status quo of white male dominance, aka the patriarchy. ”
Follow @sareytales on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook for more of The Art of Online Dating. All artwork is available for purchase on Etsy. Submit your creepy texts to be a featured #Sareytales
All artwork and creative material, as well as trademarks, slogans, and taglines, are the intellectual property of Sareytales and may not be used without permission.